


Krypt Smashing

by Beckon



Category: Mortal Kombat (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Biting, Clothed Sex, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, MK11 Krypt but MKX story, Oral Sex, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pairings will be updated as chapters are added, Porn With Plot, Rough Sex, Tentacles, The Krypt, established relationships - Freeform, sex in weird places
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-09-20
Packaged: 2020-05-15 05:44:23
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 42,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19289344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beckon/pseuds/Beckon
Summary: An island once filled with colors and gold, with cheering crowds and unconstrained energy; an island once decorated in bright designs and expensive furnishings was now a ghost, a shell- a macabre reality filling in the spaces of once elaborate memories.__________________________________________________________________________________Just a story collection of MK pairings smashing each other in varies parts of Shang Tsung's island in the Krypt.





	1. Kollector's Table- Kitana/Hanzo

**Author's Note:**

> As the title and summary say, this is basically just a shameless collection of stories detailing the rather fuck-able places in the MK11 Krypt. Each chapter will be named after the who and where to save time, and each chapter will be tagged with the actual tags pertaining to that story. I don't think there will be any MK11 spoilers in here but in case I do find myself adding one, I will also tag the chapter with a spoiler warning in case someone still needs to see it. 
> 
> _________________________________________  
> Kollector's Table  
> Pairing: Kitana/Hanzo Hasashi  
> Tags: A LOT of story, Explicit Sexual Content, Groping, Fingering, Partly-clothed sex, Kissing, Table Sex  
> Summary: Kitana visits Goro's Lair to pay her final respects to her old friend, and the Shirai Ryu Grandmaster has accompanied her for support. When they depart from the former Shokan's throne room, Kitana is surprised to find that an additional room had been added to the lair- and recently too.

The Shirai Ryu Grandmaster made for good company even if Kitana wasn't certain of why she had brought him along with her.

Well, she knew _why_ she did, but in the grander scheme of things, there weren't many legitimate reasons to it.

She liked his company- and she liked to _be_ in his company.

Hanzo was a warmth in the dreary, de-saturated landscape around them; a spot of color against cold stones and overgrown foliage.

To say that the island and home of the former Shang Tsung had seen better days was an understatement.

An island once filled with colors and gold, with cheering crowds and unconstrained energy; an island once decorated in bright designs and expensive furnishings was now a ghost, a shell- a macabre reality filling in the spaces of once elaborate memories.

It was a feeling she had experienced before, with herself.

A reality set in fire and stone, in burning alive in the Netherrealm.

All while her nightmares kept showing her visions of a happier past, of a future that once could have been.

A future that she had now though.

Old and firm, but still mold-able in determined hands.

Kitana felt the elevator shift beneath her feet as it slowly began to descend. She watched as the moon-lit pathway, once behind them and now in front, slowly began to disappear as the ground seemed to rise around them. A full mask of light soon turned into a sliver and then into pitch-darkness as the elevator carried them down a shaft once carved out by hands.

There was almost this sense of suffocation as she stayed still in the darkness, as she held tight to the ceremonial basket in her arms. It went from being in an arcane elevator to feeling like she was in a grave, being cast down into Hell once more.

But it didn't take long before the Grandmaster lit a small flame in the palm of his hand, casting gentle light in their caged environment.

And she took in the way the light fell across his face, highlighting the broken curve of his nose, the rough alignment of his cheekbone, and the ever present scowl he seemed to carry with him.

"Scared of the dark, Grandmaster?" Kitana spoke in gentle tease.

"It was more for your sake than my own," Hanzo replied, a quiet chuckle on his lips still, "but there is nothing wrong with appreciating the company of light."

Perhaps so.

Sometimes she forgot just how gentle light could be.

Years spent in the Netherrealm had forced her to accept that their only sources of light either came from the blistering heat of the lava pools, or from the blood moon that could burn the skin from bone after too long of exposure; both of which had once left vibrant scars on her body.

But even from the hands of the former Wraith, now human again, the light seemed so calming and gentle.

Kitana felt the elevator settle beneath her, disturbing and forcing a cloud of dust and dirt to billow out from underneath the floorboards. More importantly though, it brought a new flood of light around them- this time by lanterns and torches, still alive and fresh from the former Sorcerer's energy. Despite the passing decades, she could still feel Shang Tsung's presence on this island; it gave off a chilling impression that he was still alive somewhere in these halls.

It seemed to take forever for the elevator doors to open, something that she remembered well enough from the last time she graced this underground lair.

Stepping out, Kitana moved ahead to guide the Grandmaster through the carved out temple. Despite being underground, it was still large and spacious enough to put most other lairs to shame- even with its need for lanterns to provide lighting, and with the overgrown appearances of stalagmites and stalactites, although those hadn't always been there either. Then again, with no one here to do upkeep on the place, it wasn't surprising.

She lead them through the lair entrance, urging herself not to look at or focus on the multitude of statues that lined the walkway; grand in posture, the statutes depicted in Goro's image also acted as support beams, with marble arms holding up the roof above them.

Still, she kept her eyes focused mostly on the ground in front of her.

Counting the steps it took until she was in the throne room, and only then did she look up.

And only then did she allow herself to settle her eyes on the mummified remains she had traveled all the way out here to see again. It had been decades since she had last seen Goro, and this was not the fate that she had imagined for him.

But she had spoken to Queen Sheeva in Outworld, and she heard of the news from the Shokan herself- and she knew then that she had to come here, that she had to pay her final respects.

And Queen Sheeva had been gracious enough to put together a burial basket for her, a tradition amongst Shokan memorials.

Goro had been Shang Tsung's favorite Champion, as well as the Emperor's.

He had once been her ally as well.

They may have gone their different ways, they may have carried different philosophies, but he had once been a treasured friend to her just the same. She still wanted to honor those years and give herself closure for times now long gone.

Standing in front of the mummified remains, Kitana hugged the burial arrangement to her chest for a moment before she stepped forward to place it on his lap. She said a few words to herself, quiet under her breath, before she stepped away. There was not much more that she could do, but this- this felt like enough. She had said her goodbyes to a friend, and had now said her goodbyes to a lost era.

The last door to her long-gone past was closed now.

The ghosts that remained were no longer her burden to carry.

The touch of a hand against her shoulder pulled her attention away and Kitana looked back at the man behind her; she studied the subtle expression on his face, a look of genuine concern and perhaps another emotion, but one that she couldn't identify.

"It is not easy to lay a friend to rest," Hanzo started, squeezing her shoulder now in a mask of comfort, "but in some ways, it can be an honor to do so. It is a precious affair that not many have the chance to do. You laid to rest his past and your own."

"You speak too highly," Kitana replied, before she moved a hand to cover his own. "It is bittersweet to bury the past but... there is nothing else that we can do with it now."

"We can always remember it."

Perhaps.

She would be a fool to allow for a mere twenty-five years of life spent in Hell overtake ten thousand years of better memories.

Not perfect memories, but certainly better.

"There is nothing I want to remember," she assured, squeezing his hand now. "There is only the future- and the present."

Kitana took a moment, allowing her thoughts to properly settle before she compartmentalized the rest. She didn't want to sit around and linger, there would be time later on for the full impact of this moment to land. And she would deal with it accordingly then.

Turning to face the Grandmaster next to her, she once more took in how the glow of the open torch flames looked warm against his skin. How the yellow flames seemed to match his trademark color- only this time, bringing out the warmth of humanity that breathed life into him now.

"Both of which are looking hopeful- and _handsome,_ " she mused with a smile.

Hanzo returned her smile and shook his head before he moved to cup her face in his hands. He held her for a short moment, looking her over in a way she was familiar with but never got tired of, before he pulled her into him and kissed her lightly. "Come, let us leave- least we do something to desecrate the dead."

She playfully pushed him away from her, before she moved on ahead to lead him back through the lair entrance. She had only come back to this island for the one purpose; she had no plans to explore the lair any further. She had seen it plenty of times before- centuries before, but still. Other than natural decay, it didn't seem like much else had changed.

Besides, Jade said that she would come by later in the month to explore the catacombs for whatever might be down here. Kitana didn't know what the woman expected to find, but she had no qualms with it. If there was something to be found, Jade would find it and bring it up with her.

Moving back through the entrance room, Kitana found herself slowing as she noticed what looked to be an opening of some kind in the right corner of the room. She couldn't recall anything from past memory about there being a corridor there; she had once had this lair memorized- she would've been able to blindly pick that room out, but she couldn't.

Despite wanting nothing more to do with this place, she felt herself deviating to see where the opening went.

"Curious now?" Hanzo questioned.

"A new structure," Kitana answered over her shoulder, "- it must've been constructed some time after I was here last. It wouldn't surprise me, I guess; they were always expanding this place every time I visited. I remember when the dining hall was first built."

Ducking through the carved doorway, she carefully made her way through the narrow, curved hallway- one of which seemed far too small for a Shokan like Goro to pass through. Kitana stepped around the bend of the hall and paused a moment as it immediately opened into another room; one that was much smaller than the others.

This was certainly a new addition.

Stepping into the room, she let her eyes took in every detail that she could- scanning the room for any sort of hidden traps or devices that might spring on her. Goro had a knack for trapping certain areas of his lair- and he greatly enjoyed hearing them spring active during one of his lavish dinner parties. And while this might've been a new addition to his former keep, she wasn't about to let those memories of the Shokan laughing keep her from making a naive mistake.

Kitana kept her eyes open for any place where someone might be trying to hide as well; while she highly doubted someone would even attempt to live down here, it wasn't out of the question either. This place had been long abandoned, but despite the dangers this island still held, it was still a sought-after commodity. Shang Tsung was known for his lavish expenses and expensive living. Anyone willing to risk their life for gold would find greater rewards in doing so here.

But there seemed to be nothing more than empty chests and tables of dust-covered trinkets, long since been abandoned. Everything had been neatly laid out though, as though on display- like one of the vendor tables in the Outworld marketplace.

"Looks like a market table," Hanzo spoke, following in behind her, and speaking her own conclusion.

"But for who?" Kitana replied. "This isn't exactly the greatest location for selling. A private collection maybe."

The L-shaped table to her left was covered in an assortment of deserted knick-knacks; once gold, the decorative pots and urns were now ashen from the dust and dirt in the air. On the connecting portion of the table, however, were things that she well-recognized.

Dehydrated larva and boiled egg sacs harvested from the Kytinn clan; they were once considered delicacies in Outworld.

Kitana could still feel the tightness in her throat from watching Goro and the Emperor feast on them when she was a child. And that lingering feeling of nausea seemed ready to be triggered at any moment even now.

The neighboring table had more boiled larva, these ones at a later stage anyways, and they had been served next to a bowl filled with Tigore tusks. More than likely, the tusks had been boiled to create a broth for the larva to soak in, and had then been scraped of marrow on the inside to be served as a side dish. Or at least, that's how she had always seen them together.

The food seemed relatively fresh, but cooked Kytinn was also known to have a long shelf life; boiling the egg sacs and larva served as a sort of preservation method. The food could've been here for weeks, but even then they required someone to have been here even that long ago.

Concerning, but more curious than anything.

Next to that mess of preserved food was another object that Kitana recalled a little too well.

Moloch's chain and ball laid coiled on the aged tabletop; an odd addition compared to the rest of the table.

[She could still remember slicing the Oni's head off in her Revenant years.]

There was a wooden box tucked next to the table filled with tarnished weapons, more than likely once used by the fighters in the Tournament.

Kitana glanced behind her at the catch of movement in her peripheral and watched as Hanzo approached the opposing table. No surprise, considering it looked to be covered in more weapons; they looked well-worn from battle and combat, but still in decent enough shape to display. A used warrior's blade was a commodity at one point; the Grandmaster's swords would no doubt still be able to fetch a hefty price if he ever decided to give them away.

But rumor had it that Hanzo preferred to melt his swords down, refurbish them with new metals, and then re-forge them into new blades.

So he could always carry his old battles with him.

The wall across from her caught her eye though and Kitana looked up to see what looked to be a broken weapons stand, one that held the bladed staffs once carried by Shang Tsung's guards. They looked so old now, and yet she could still remember the way the straight blades had once caught the spot of firelight on their tips.

Kitana brushed her hand against Hanzo's back as she moved by him, heading towards the table at the far end of the room. Considering how it was placed, positioned across the front of what looked to be a cavern entrance, this could've been the dealer's table. She cocked her head as she looked beyond the old scrolls in trade and looked to the cavern beyond. Eyes were quick to pick up on the hole that had formed in the cavern roof, allowing a shaft of light to cast down onto a massive aged skeleton that was laid out beyond their reach.

Perhaps it was a skeleton from one of the last reigning dragons, just before the bloodline descended down into the Shokan and into dozens of other Outworld species.

It was the only thing she could think of that would leave behind bones that large.

Looking back to the dealer's table, Kitana ran her hand along the aged wood, noting that half of the table was covered in a mess of gold coins punctured by a square hole in the middle. What might've once been a fortune was now basically useless; the currency this gold had once carried was useless in this modern era- but it looked like it was useless to begin with if it had been collecting like this.

And at the other end of the table, she came upon yet another item that she recognized.

Picking up the bladed hat, Kitana lightly brushed the dust from it before she held it up in inspection- trying to use the torch light to catch a reflection on the dull metal.

"This is an odd place- with an odd collection," Hanzo remarked, stepping away from where he had still been looking over the weapons. He turned towards her, as though to say something else, before he stopped- a look of evident confusion washing over him. "Is that... Kung Lao's hat?"

"A replica," Kitana corrected, "- a deception of one." She carefully flipped the hat over, examining the interior before she tilted it down to look at the circular blade forming the trim. "It's made of low-end materials. Kung Lao is a man of fashion and quality- despite being a monk; he would never forge a hat made of lower-tier metal, let alone subpar cloth. Not to mention, the craftmanship on this is not up to his standard, although admittedly, it is very close."

"Are you telling me that man makes his own hats?"

Kitana smiled as she flipped the hat back over and looked to the Grandmaster, who seemed genuinely surprised- if not a little confused still. "He only makes one at a time and then destroys it when he makes a new one," she explained, before she set the hat back on the table. "With so many people who witnessed him in the Tournament, and with how big of a show he makes with his hat, I'm not surprised that someone wanted to profit off his trademark."

"You think someone tried to make a copy-cat?" Hanzo questioned.

"They tried and they did a decent enough job on it," Kitana nodded. "If you didn't know the attention to details that Kung Lao puts into his work, you'd be none the wiser to assume this was one of his own."

"But why?"

She offered a shrug at first before she thought the question over. "Well, I can think of one person who would be looking for something like this."

"Who?" Hanzo started before it seemed like the answer came to him on its own. "Don't tell me- the Kollector," he replied, to which she nodded. "I thought he only collected things of the finest quality? You think he'd get duped by something like that?"

"He's always looking for his next coin, so he's greedy- but he also thinks himself to be a fine collector," Kitana mused. "It's possible that someone either posed as Kung Lao or as someone close to him to make it seem like a genuine trade. Considering that it's well-known that the Kollector has a lot of money on his side, the whole thing was probably just a quick cash-grab."

"Knowing the antics of Outworld, I wouldn't be surprised," Hanzo remarked. "But why would it be here?"

Kitana mused the question over again before she gave another shrug. "Haven't an idea. The Kollector was always Shao Kahn's tax-man, but that's not to say that he didn't work with Shang Tsung either- I mean, look at this place, it's teeming with coins. Shang Tsung's fortune would be the Kollector's wet dream. Maybe after Shang Tsung's death, the Kollector took up root here- or maybe Shao Khan allowed him to, it's hard to say."

"Grave robbing wouldn't be above the Kollector's morals," he noted.

"Precisely- not to mention, Goro was buried with plenty of artifacts as well, plenty more for him to take," she huffed, before she looked around the room once more- spotting the small tunnel to her left, half-hidden behind a hanging curtain. Given the state of this room, she could only imagine what might've been behind the curtain- probably more stolen goods.

She moved towards the opening and ducked behind the curtain, stepping into what ended up being a disappointingly small, dead-end of a tunnel instead. It had either been half-carved out and never finished, or was just done like this on purpose- or was carved out to make for a quick storage room of some kind. It didn't seem like anything else was in there, but she still stepped in to give it a decent look-over, just in case.

Nothing more than more discarded gold coins.

Kitana supposed she didn't really know what she was expecting.

With how the other room was set up, she had just assumed there would be something more in here. Perhaps she had just let her imagination get the best of her.

It had been a long day.

Starting back to the Kollector's room, Kitana peeked around the curtain to spy on her counterpart- and noticed now that Hanzo had moved to partly seat himself on the edge of the collection table, giving himself the most opened view of the room. His arms were crossed with his eyes locked forward, ready to spring up at the first sign of danger.

The man was always on the lookout for something that was and wasn't there.

Then again, she couldn't fault him.

She was a trained Assassin herself; she knew the rules of engagement.

Kitana took the moment to observe him in a rare scene where he wasn't just the Shirai Ryu Grandmaster, where he wasn't just a Scorpion with a deadly spear. In the low light of the cavern, he looked vulnerable, he looked human; he looked just like the man Scorpion had once cursed in the fires of the Netherrealm.

Hanzo was heavy across the shoulders, thick across the chest, and narrow at the waist, giving him an alluring silhouette from any angle.

The rugged cut of his yellow vest made him look less refined as a Grandmaster, but his skills were more in combat, in him in moving motion rather than in him standing aside looking pretty.

Pushing the curtain aside, Kitana stepped back into the same room and watched as he looked over at the movement- and she caught the subtle smile on the corners of his lips as his eyes met her own.

" _Ooh_ , I must've missed this collection piece on the table," Kitana remarked as she made her way over to him.

"Another hat?"

[Right over his head.]

Kitana shook her head before she stood in front of him and moved to place her hands on either side of him, locking him between her and the table. "Everything in this room has a price, you know."

It seemed to take a few seconds of his eyes moving from hers to her body position and then back again before he caught on to her silent language- and then he quietly chuckled to himself, having now caught on to her earlier remark. "Are you referring to me as an object?" Hanzo questioned, as he leaned back from her, offering only a foot or so of space between them.

"Shh," she mused, as she placed a finger to his lips, "the money is talking."

" _Wow_ ," Hanzo replied, dryly at that- but he seemed to amuse her still as he leaned back forward and coaxed her into a kiss.

Kitana brought her hands to cup his face as he had done to her early, before she pulled him to her and held him there. She gently nudged at his thighs until she managed to squeeze herself between them, a motion he seemed to tease her with by lightly fighting her against it. But it didn't take long before she felt his hands brush against her waist before they moved around to the small of her back. And she felt the way his fingers curled against her, pulling her in and cementing her in his hold just the same.

And when she pulled away from him, she found herself caught up in the roughness of his face but the gentle nature of his eyes- once blown out and white, they were a natural black now, a small, often overlooked sign of his returned humanity. It was why he could still wear the same yellow theme of Scorpion and yet be so completely different from the Wraith.

"What was it you were saying before? Something about desecrating the dead?" Kitana whispered.

"That was a joke," Hanzo reminded.

"Coming from _you_?" she replied, as she let her fingers tease the long hair of his beard. "This would not be the worst place I've done it- and this wouldn't be the first time I've done it here."

Her remark seemed to catch his attention and she watched as his expression went from a questioning look to an almost amused one. "Ten thousand years worth of stories then," he teased.

Kitana gently shook his head in her hands before she squeezed her palms against his cheeks, causing him to laugh. "Is that so wrong?" she questioned.

"No, but many might assume that doing it _here_ would be. It is not the vibrant place it once was."

"That it is not, but that has also not stopped us before," Kitana replied, touching lightly on a topic that they both tried to avoid, but never ran away from.

After all, doing anything here would certainly be less of a sin than the nights they had once shared in the Netherrealm cathedral. A Wraith and a Revenant, neither of whom were under their own sense of control, and yet they still managed to find each other then.

She loosened her hold on him and used her hands to gently caress his face instead, feeling the way he sank into the gesture- so easily, so safely.

"We both have too many responsibilities outside of this place. You have the Shirai Ryu, I have Edenian business, as well as my own to take care of- and General Blade always has something to say to the both of us," Kitana continued, gently running her fingers through his beard once more- a subtle gesture that he would never admit he enjoyed as much as he did. "But we're already gone and everyone's filling in for us, and there's no telling how long they assume we'll be gone for- so for once, we are both free of our responsibilities."

The Grandmaster always gave off this aura of being independent, of being perfectly capable on his own; he seemed to like being isolated with no one else's company but his own. And yet, he seemed so relaxed, so happy in her hold- happy to just be around her, with or without the ongoing situation. She had overheard Grandmaster Kuai Liang on more than one occasion mention offhandedly that Hanzo seemed happier with her around, which was a perk all those who shared an alliance with him seemed to enjoy as well.

Years spent having death control her hands, it was almost therapeutic to be able to give comfort instead.

"You are incredibly persuasive, Princess- or at least, you are trying to be," Hanzo mused.

A tease, a subtle continuation to her own proposition.

" _Oh_? Does the Grandmaster doubt my persuasive abilities then?" Kitana questioned.

"That's not what-"

Kitana placed her finger back on his lips, silencing him once more. "Hush now," she replied.

With the power of having his full attention, she moved her hands to the blue material that was knotted between her breasts and slowly worked to untie it- noting that his eyes were following her every movement now.

Once undone, she dropped her hands to untie the knot at the bottom of the hanging sash as well, before she pulled the freed ends of it out from where they had been tucked beneath her waist protector. The now-loosened material allowed her to peel off the thin metal plates from her breasts, allowing her to work the mess of it and its connecting rope over her shoulders and down her arms- eventually allowing her to toss the tangled mess onto the table behind him.

And she swore she saw the Grandmaster almost flinch at the sound it hitting the table.

She reached up and carefully unlatched the sliding clips on the back of her gold neck-bracer and pulled it off as well, taking the weighted sternum plate with it; this time, she placed them more carefully onto the table, purposely leaning herself towards him only to pull back before he could touch her. She had forgo-ed wearing her veil for the trip and only need to remove the neck liner she wore underneath her bracer- which she then lightly tossed at him.

"Is this convincing you any further, Grandmaster?" Kitana poised.

And she could almost see the internal struggle behind his eyes as he had followed her every action with careful intent- only to now look as though he was fighting himself over whether or not he should fall for her scheme. As though he wasn't the one who had first put the notion into her head.

But it only took seconds before he let his eyes drop away from hers, as he looked her over and took her in- taking in her round shoulders, her deep collarbones, and the subtle rolls from her breasts, squeezed tight in the black sash that was still tied around them.

"Because I can take it one step further-"

"No need to," Hanzo interrupted reassuringly, but also rather quickly she noted, before he moved his hands up along her back once more; he pulled her in against him, keeping her tucked between his arms and thighs now. "After all, the Princess gets what she wants."

"That I do," Kitana smiled, "- even if it's from a man as stubborn as you."

"Well that's just part of the trade."

Kitana cupped his face once more and leaned in to kiss him, feeling the renewed eagerness behind his lips now as Hanzo moved in to greet her. In touch, he was warmer now- not just in a reactive way but quite physically. That hellfire energy of his would get worked up every time he did, which for the Grandmaster was quite often- and sometimes it was almost like steam could be pressed out of his skin.

She let her fingers roam, caressing his face in her hold, before she moved to push them through his hair, thick and coarse to the touch; heat-damaged almost. She slid her hands as far as she could, feeling the subtle restriction from where he had the long strands tied behind him- before she used his hair as leverage to tilt his head back, yanking it to some degree.

She gave herself an advantage as she felt his lips part with the sharp motion.

And the brief moan that came from his throat, coaxed out by the art of her tongue filling his mouth, was almost enough on its own.

Kitana felt the way Hanzo gripped at her tighter now, urged on by her advance- and looking to make his own. His now warm hands set to roam over her body once again, far more eager, far more tedious in their prodding this time around. She felt how he rolled his palms over the bare skin of her back- callous skin meeting even more callous skin.

He kept his touch light and exploratory, examining every inch of skin he could touch, and taking his time with a body he had once been well-acquainted with.

[Before and after the Netherrealm.]

[She had only known him as a Wraith before- and there was still limited experience with him as a human.]

His hands pushed up against the grain of her back and Kitana felt the way he curled his fingers over the top hem of her black sash. It was a slow, almost agonizing motion as Hanzo peeled it down, allowing her to feel the subtle impression the tight cloth had left behind on her skin. She felt how he kept his fingers tangled underneath the fabric as he moved his hands around her ribs and to the front of her body.

She felt him carefully pull the cloth away from her breasts, inevitably exposing them to the dry cavern air now.

And Hanzo wasted no time in cupping his hands against her bare breasts, leaving the black sash to slide down to her ribs where it eventually stopped.

Kitana moaned softly into his mouth as she felt him squeeze his hands against her, feeling the way her breasts filled and overfilled his palms. He teased her, toyed with her as his fingers rolled over her pink nipples- catching them on occasion and squeezing them until she squeaked.

"So you still do that?" Hanzo teased, clearly amused by her response, as he squeezed her nipple again for the same reaction.

And knowing that he was doing it on purpose now, trying to elicit a response, she tried to bite it back- but the noise still managed to make it out of her throat. It might've been cute when she was an acting Princess, a naive woman infatuated with a Wraith trading blows in the Tournament- and obsessed with his aggressive tendencies outside of the arena.

She didn't think it was so cute now, as a trained Assassin, but the Grandmaster seemed to think otherwise.

"I could ask the same," Kitana replied, trying not to break face as she felt his hands continue to caress her breasts. His fingers had moved on to rolling her nipples underneath them, shifting from a firm tease to a more subtle one, playing with their sensitivity. But the switch between being rough and being gentle, even with hands like his, had begun to stir a quiet aching in her belly.

"It was different before," he remarked.

They both were, that much they couldn't deny.

"And yet," she mused, as she brushed her lips to his own but pulled away before he could catch her, "some things still stay the same."

"Temptation, mostly," Hanzo humored.

She chuckled lightly before she moved in to kiss him this time, feeling the easy way he kissed her in return- soft and subtle, but avoiding her advances. When she attempted to further the embrace, she felt him seemingly grin at her own insistence before he pulled away from her; before he ducked his head down and pressed his lips against the center of her chest instead.

Somehow she should've seen that coming.

Kitana loosened the grip she still had tangled in his hair and kept her hold light as he kissed down along her sternum and into the valley between her breasts. His breath was warm and every exhale left the warmth to pool against her skin.

There was this desperate tenderness in his grip as his hands moved to roam over her again, finding favoritism in the small of her back. And she took in the trailing gesture of his fingertips as they danced slowly along the curve of her spine, always needing to remain in motion- as though afraid the fire under his skin would leave behind a burning mark should he stay still for too long.

Kitana moved a hand to cradle the back of his neck as she leaned down and kissed the top of his head, feeling the gentle vibrations from his lips as Hanzo hummed against her skin in response. It was a gentle gesture, a touch of affection that he so greatly crave but wouldn't ask for- not so easily anyways. A man of independence that was too strong; or a man who sought out a gentle touch for his own memory.

She wasn't quite accustomed to them either, but being around him was a learning experience.

The Grandmaster was a man of patience, but there was little waiting to be had as Kitana soon felt that warm mouth against one of her breasts now, and felt the touch of his lips as they closed against her nipple. And despite the pleasing sensations from the suckling motions from his mouth, she found herself almost wanting to laughing instead- more out of the absurdity of their actions than anything else.

They were two incredibly powerful people on an isolated island that had once been powerful enough in its own right.

And here they were.

Desecrating everything it had once stood for.

His mouth switched from breast to breast, while he used his fingers to keep her unattended one entertained- swirling her nipple around in mimicking motions between his tongue and fingers. He'd only break motion when she yanked his head up to her, taking him by the lips and engorging herself on his tongue, before he'd trail back from lips to neck to breast again.

Each and every contact between them was hot.

Her skin touched by flame with every contact made by his lips.

With every touch, with every kiss, every rubbing motion of his tongue, she could feel the throbbing settling between her legs; she could already hear the pounding of blood in her ears, that sense of adrenaline of what was to come, of what she wanted to do with him. There was that nervous anticipation, that same stringing of nerves that made her tap her fans against her legs just before a kill.

The Grandmaster's patience was unmatched, but hers was hardly much to provide competition.

Kitana brought him to her lips once more, feeling the digging presence of his fingers in her back, before she moved her hands to overlap his own and pulled them away from her. She used the weight of her body to push him back, eventually placing his hands onto the table space behind him- leaving them there for his own support. She gently subdued any hint of movement he tried to respond with, before he gave in and let her have control.

She pulled her hands from his own once she was certain he wouldn't move them, before she went on to find the thick knot of rope tied around his waist- and used both hands to untie it. It was like a subtle game of tug-of-war as she pulled the rope loose and worked it from around his body before she tossed it across the collection table beneath them.

"We're still serious about this?" he questioned.

"No, I just decided to whip out my breasts for the fun of it," she lightly retorted.

"You act like this would be the first time you're done so."

Kitana playfully dragged her nails across his cheek and heard him laugh in response before she went back to work, now focused on tugging off the yellow sash from his waist. And once it was gone, it allowed for his rugged yellow vest to come loose in return- and there was little time wasted as she took the thick material and pushed it over and off his shoulders, allowing it to crumple onto the table next.

"You and this yellow," Kitana remarked in a subtle jab, as her hands cupped his face and brought it to her own.

"Just like you and this blue," Hanzo replied.

And once more, she felt the warmth of his lips, of his mouth against her own; she felt the heat of them open against hers, the heat of his tongue and his breath. Fingers tugged lightly at his beard in tease before they tangled themselves in his hair, feeling how the strands began to come loose in her hands now; she felt the way they had started to slip out from their tight band, shook loose by her constant touching.

She felt the way he seemingly melted in her hold once more, caught up in the cradling tenderness of her hands.

It was the first time he let his guard down.

Giving her ample time to strike.

Moving a hand away from his jaw, Kitana slipped it down between them before she pressed it against his groin- and she felt the sudden jolt that coursed through his body at the touch. She felt the press of his thighs against her, which had instinctively moved to close at her touch, only to find her as the obstacle keeping them open.

The mild struggle only encouraged her to keep moving her hand, running and pressing it against him in fluid strokes- until she could feel the bulge of him filling her palm. It was enlightening how such a simple action could betray a man like him so easily.

She could hear the quiet moaning from his throat now as her fingers traced the shape of him through his pants.

"For a Princess, you really like to play dirty," Hanzo remarked, his warm breath shuddering against her lips as he pulled away from her- and continued to do so whenever she leaned in, stringing her along. And the evident grin on his lips let her know he was doing it on purpose, just to toy with her.

"I was raised in Outworld," she reminded, moving a hand to his chest now before she forced him down onto his forearms. And with easy grace, she hoisted herself onto the table with him, settling herself in a straddle across his open thighs. "Never really cared for a fair fight."

"Oh believe me, I know."

Kitana moved her fingers to the armored cincher around her waist and worked to dismantle it- plucking off the binding rope that kept it together. She barely got that much done before she felt Hanzo's hands move to overtake her own, and she was more than willing to let him take on the hassling task. He pulled off the dismantled pieces with some struggle- not due to his own skills, but rather due to her own hand, which had resumed with rubbing against him.

But he was not one to let her get the best of him, and succeeded at the task as he set the armored pieces aside. He worked to unwrap the black sash from around her waist, which was inevitably tossed aside to join the growing pile of her discarded things.

Hanzo pressed his palms against her bare abdomen now, letting his hands roam over her once more; he scoped out the newly exposed skin, no doubt feeling the way it pulled underneath his hands at the touch.

His fingers traced decade-old scars, well on their way to fading off of her body; her Edenian blood did not hold on to memories, and every few decades it would erase the scars from her skin, allowing her to start anew either way she chose to. And there was some comfort to be had knowing that the scars from her years in the Netherrealm would soon be gone as well, erasing any hint of their existence.

His skin would still hold on to them, casting a constant reminder onto herself.

But that was only a small price to pay.

He moved his hands around her, settling his palms against her back before he pulled her forward onto his waist- a motion that allowed her to feel the bulge of him between her legs now.

" _Ooh_ ," Kitana teased, "so forward now, are-"

She was cut off by the motion of his arms folding against her, before he hoisted himself up into a seat position- bringing himself almost face-to-face with her with no prior warning.

Without so much as a word, Hanzo used the table as leverage as he pushed himself back to his feet; by keeping his arms tight around her waist, he pulled her up along with him. And as she moved her hands to take hold of his shoulders, for her own sense of security, Kitana was surprised by the ease of his movements. From simply using the muscles in his back to lift himself up without the use of his arms, to treating her as though she weighed nothing to him as he carried the weight of her body against his chest.

And with the odd sense of gracefulness that the Grandmaster had, Hanzo turned them around and laid her out against the table now- ensuring that she laid against his discarded vest rather than on the table itself. He released her from his hold only once she was settled on her back, but not before he grabbed her by the hips and pushed her further up the table- letting her settle a little more comfortably.

Kitana found herself laughing at the change in positioning- impressed by how quick he had been to act, and how quick he had been to catch her at a down moment. How easily the tables had been turned by him. And she grinned as she felt the aged wood beneath her shift as he placed his hands on either side of her, finally having pinned her between him and the table in an absolute reversal.

Perhaps she had been playing her cards too strongly.

And he had moved further to humble her.

As he had once back during the Tournament era.

"Oh, so now look at who the object is," Kitana teased.

Hanzo gave a brisk laugh at the remark, which was something he so rarely did before- and somehow being underneath him in this position only made it seem more special. It made the both of them seem more vulnerable, which was something they both actively avoided- and avoided well. But moments like this made that sense of vulnerability feel more like a strength than a weakness.

After all, it took a strong woman like her to crumble a strong man like him.

"You said it, not me."

"The question is, Grandmaster, just how much are you willing to spend?" she mused further, "- to add me to your collection?"

"And here I thought you were already a part of it," Hanzo replied.

"To a degree," Kitana teased, before she held her arms out to gently coax him down to her.

And he came to her easily, at first anyways.

He kissed her, filling her mouth once more, while his hands made themselves familiar with her body again. She felt his palms press against her ribs, felt them slide down across her firm stomach and play with her hips; there was little fat on her body but he still found skin to squeeze and hold in his grasp.

She carefully moved her legs around him before she hooked the point of her heels against the backs of his thighs- ensuring that he couldn't break from her, not without a fight anyways.

The moment his lips broke from her own, he buried his head into the curve of her neck, breathing heat against her skin once again and gently tickling her with the thick hairs of his beard. Kitana tilted her head back at the embrace, curling her fingers over the back of his neck as she gently urged him on; she could feel the subtle impression of his teeth against her skin, the subtle suckling motion from his tongue.

Hanzo slipped an arm underneath her body and lifted her upper body off of the table, pulling her in against his chest. He held her just long enough for him to grab the yellow sash of his from where she had tossed it before, before he slid it underneath her head.

And when he lowered her back to the table, she felt how the thick material offered some cushion to her head and neck, while also keeping her tightly-styled hair from touching the table as well.

She hummed out a quiet laugh and wrapped her arms around his neck now, making it difficult for him to pull away from her this time- although he still managed to do so despite her light objections.

"Such a gentleman," Kitana noted, fingers toying with the bundled material underneath her before she reached up and grabbed a pinch of his black undershirt. "Do one more favor for your Princess?"

Hanzo seemed to roll his eyes at her theatrics but reached up to slip the remaining shirt off regardless- which he then dropped on top of her. "Is everything to the Princess' liking now?"

She laughed again, out loud this time, and hugged his shirt to her chest; she took in his warm scent that lingered on it, while her eyes took in his newly exposed form- thick and muscular before her. Years of constant training, honing his craft, and leading this Shirai Ryu, had given the Grandmaster a more-than-appealing look of grandeur.

She had once been considered one of the most beautiful women in Outworld, but he had certainly made his own mark in Earthrealm.

His skin was bronze, darkened by the sun he often trained in- and perhaps heated by the fire that still resided inside of him.

"You don't give yourself enough credit, Grandmaster," she replied as she tossed his shirt aside now. "I have high standards, but you more than adequately fill them- and on a constant basis at that."

"Don't be crass, Princess."

Reaching up to him, Kitana brought her hands to his chest before she lightly raked her fingers down against him, a motion she had once made against bare skin in the light of the Netherrealm pools. His hands caught her own before she got too low however, preventing her from antagonizing him again; he brought them to his lips instead- kissing soft warmth against her knuckles.

She squeezed his hands in return, curling her fingers against his hold.

When Kitana inevitably tugged lightly on his hands, Hanzo allowed her to take them- allowing her to guide them where she wanted him to go next.

And she guided them in untying the interlacing material from around her waist, before he took over and unraveled the soft fabric on his own accord. The blue material came away where it needed to, allowing him to leave it loose and hanging from her thighs. It wasn't properly removed, because in order to do so she would need to untie the long stitching down the sides of her leg guards- and that wasn't exactly something she wanted to deal with right now.

Besides, this wouldn't be the first time she had kept her heels on for him.

Kitana moved one heel to press against his hip before she pushed against him; she felt the way he took a step or two back with her motions- giving her the space she needed to bring her other heel against him.

Every time she moved her legs she could feel the wet mess between them, she could feel the persistent throb that had started to become almost painful now. And with him standing where he was, almost towering over her, it only made the sensations in her belly even more heated. Again, her mind kept racing back to the Tournament, how he had once used his power to get the upper-hand on her- and how she had come to allow him to, hoping that he might make the right move and take her as she was.

[And the memory of him eventually doing so spurred a noticeable throb in her belly.]

There had been more words between them than anything else it felt, and yet her body was already getting impatient with him.

Or maybe that was the reason why _she_ was getting impatient with him.

"Well?" Kitana pressed. "Don't you have something to give me?"

"Give me time," Hanzo assured as he wrapped his hands around her ankles and lifted her heels from his hips, giving himself the freedom to move back towards her. And as he did, he pulled her legs around him, letting her knees hook at his waist instead. "No need to get testy, Princess."

"Keep this up, and I'll be more than just testy."

Kitana felt his hands run down the length of her bare thighs before they touched together at the curve of her stomach. And already she knew that he was using the anticipation to work her up further, buying his time for a few extra seconds of build-up- as though he hadn't already done enough. He was a man of patience too much really, and she was willing to let her heels dig into the small of his back if he made her wait any longer.

One hand remained flat-palmed against her belly, while the other carefully trailed fingertips down between her legs.

The flat of his thumb brushed against her clit first, sending a mild tremor throughout her body, before he slowly began to roll it underneath his touch; and from his touch alone, she came to realize just how swollen her clit had become.

She was beyond the point of fighting it and instead let her head fall back at the sensations that began to ease the ached throbbing. There was a soft moan that curled in her throat as she felt the hint of pressure and firmness behind his touch, ensuring that each rolling stroke counted.

He seemed to bide his time as he slowly rolled the pad of his thumb over her clit, treating her to a wide circular motion that slowly became tighter as he watched her- enjoying himself on her reactions. She closed her eyes and let herself focus on the sensations, moaning softly between every other stroke, and gently squeezing at his hips with her knees.

And when Hanzo seemed content with her responding pleasure, he trailed the fingertips on his other hand down between her legs as well. Kitana felt the growing anticipation but still stammered out a gasp when he touched her thin labia and teased her by rubbing them between his fingers; she pressed the point of her heel into the back of his thigh in an involuntary jerk.

The teasing was brief before he carefully separated them and pushed his fingers between them- allowing him to coat himself in her warm arousal. Her own fluid made his motions smooth and slick now as he slowly explored her, teasing her once more by rubbing his fingertips against her entrance- which of course only made the throbbing fluctuate in intensity.

Kitana was almost on the verge of forcing him when she felt him rub her once more before he slowly pushed two of his fingers inside of her.

And the subtle breach alone had her back partly curling off of the table.

Her body was all the more welcoming, making it easy for him to work in a few short thrusts on his own. Each thrust was warmer than the last, easing her body into the motions before she moved her fingers down to guide him to how she wanted him to move.

"Just like that," Kitana started, aware that her voice sounded more like a whisper than a speaking tone.

Hanzo let her take lead, just long enough for him to figure out what she wanted and needed, before he took the reigns once more.

She kept her hands curled against her stomach, partly gripping the hand he had clutching at her mound- helping to keep his thumb anchored to her clit. She let herself get lulled into his rhythm, feeling how the thrusting of his fingers was getting deeper now, and lingering longer inside of her. She felt the way he curled his fingers and pressed them against the bundle of nerves inside of her, mimicking the same warm sensation caused by his thumb.

It was enough to make her squeak again, as her thighs shuddered and squeezed him between them.

Moving her hands to table now, Kitana partly lifted herself onto the back of her hips, altering the angle between them; she stammered out a gasp at the shift of pressure from his fingers, feeling them slip away from the bundle of nerves momentarily.

She let the shuddering settle before she reached forward and grabbed at the front of his pants, which she easily and quickly tugged open. And there was no denying the eager way his cock sprang free from its tightening confinement, easily giving him away. Kitana heard the subtle groan from the back of Hanzo's throat as she wrapped her fingers around him.

While it had been fun to tease him before, to rub her hand against him through his pants and watch him squirm, _this_ was like a whole new level. And as much as Hanzo seemed to enjoy the way she stroked him, moving her fingers from base to tip and feeling the way his cock twitched under her touch, she enjoyed it just as much. It wasn't often someone could get the upper-hand on the Grandmaster, and yet she could do it with such ease.

And he turned over so easily in her hands.

She rubbed her fingertips over the head of his cock, feeling the slickness of his precum underneath her touch.

"Think you can outlast me, Grandmaster?" Kitana teased, feeling the way his pacing had staggered- his control over his dual motions slipping.

"You'll get your way, Princess," Hanzo replied, breathing a little harder between his teeth now.

Carefully pulling his fingers free from between her legs, he moved to re-situate himself before her; he grabbed her ankles once more and moved them to his shoulders, giving himself the open room he needed.

Kitana kept her fingers wrapped around him, stroking him a few more times before she pressed the tip of his cock between her folds and rubbed him against her- coating him in her arousal once more. And there was no denying the subtle thrusts he gave in response to her teasing motions as he placed his hands at her hips and took them into his grasp.

There were a few playful thrusts between them, both of them seemingly edging the other one on before she helped to align his cock to her and carefully guided him in when the moment was right.

And she heard herself gasp again, almost soundless this time, and felt her heels press into his shoulders as he pushed in, breaching her with ease once more. She fell back against the table at the rush of heat that came with the penetration, at the growing sensation of him slowly filling her. Her fingers stayed perched against his cock, slowly sliding up along it as he continued to ease himself into her- and it didn't take long before her fingers were curled against his abdomen as he sank himself to full inside of her.

"Oooh- _fuck_ -" Kitana whispered, more to herself as she laid back and took in the shared warmth between them.

The throbbing seemed to echo itself around his cock now, making her even more aware of how he felt inside of her, of how he filled her- of how her body seemed to cling to him.

"Satisfied, Princess?" he teased.

But it was easy to see how he seemed to be biting through his own breath with the words. His hands tightened in a brief squeeze around her hips, trying to mask the faint shaking of his fingers.

She could feel the way his cock twitched inside of her, giving him away once again.

"We've only started, Grandmaster."

Keeping his hands tight around her waist, Hanzo pulled her hips off the edge of the table, giving himself more of a working leverage and a better sense of control.

She felt the way he began to move, thrusting slowly at first to work himself into a rhythm- and taking his sweet time with it too.

Her hands moved to cover his own once he got himself situated, and she could feel the way he was steadily filling her again and again. Each thrust was consistent and firm, and she could feel the weight and power of his hips behind each one; she could feel the way her hips bounced in response to them as well. The Grandmaster was easy-going at first, building up the motion between them, taking in the fluid sensation of each thrust- almost as though to make sure she was wet enough for the both of them.

But it didn't take long before she felt the growing force building up behind his hips.

"That's good, just like that," Kitana started, encouraging him as she moved a hand to tangle in the yellow vest underneath her still. She bundled the thick material between her clenched fingers before she turned her head and buried her face into the soft fabric- breathing in his scent that still lingered behind on it.

Each thrust rocked her body against the kollection table, sliding her back and forth against its surface a few inches at a time. And Kitana imagined that was it not for his vest shielding her from the table itself, her back would've been well-covered in splinters by now.

The yellow material in hand helped to muffle the heavy groan from her throat as Kitana felt the shift in Hanzo's hands and felt the way he dropped her hips lower, allowing himself to enter her at a different angle.

There was a quiet, almost whine that tickled the back of her throat before she pressed the point of one heel into his left shoulder- feeling how the throbbing inside of her was now pounding in time with him. Every throb seemed to echo alongside every one of his thrusts as the Grandmaster buried himself into her with each one, taking advantage of the dropped angle of her hips that allowed him to do so with ease.

The hand she still had tangled with his own eventually released, before she moved those fingers between her legs and wrapped them around his cock once more. She could feel the way his thrusts pushed between her fingers with each one, quickly coating them in the sticky mess that was growing between them.

"Are you enjoying yourself, Grandmaster?" Kitana mused, letting herself enjoy the sight of him above her. She enjoyed the sight of his dark-hair now sticking to his neck and shoulders, the straying hairs caught on the beads of sweat that had collected on his skin. Perhaps it was a perk for him that she had failed to yank off his yellow headband, considering it was the only thing keeping his hair and sweat from falling into his face.

"Do you really need to ask?" Hanzo replied, as he moved a hand to squeeze at her bare thigh pressed against his chest- enticing a quick groan with how tight his grip had been. "

"I like to ask."

He chuckled and shook his head, keeping his focus set on her face now. "Well, to think this was how our trip here was going to end-"

Kitana untangled her hand from his vest before she moved her arm to brace against her breasts, feeling the painful strain of them bouncing in time with his thrusts. And while she knew he was enjoying the sight, she wasn't going to go home with bruises on her ribs from them- not like she had last time. "We think on our feet," she offered, her voice strained some as she squirmed under his hold now, feeling the way he kept her firmly in place, "- and we're great at improvising."

"Always have been."

She could feel his thrusting getting harder, clearly bouncing her hips against his own now as Hanzo let his weight shift forward- allowing himself to bear down onto her. And it was the shift of weight that had him hitting the right spot inside of her again; something he had been purposely avoiding just to draw this session of theirs out for as long as he could.

And given how he was giving her exactly what she wanted now, Kitana imagined that he couldn't hold out for much longer.

Not that she could either.

She moved her hands to claw at his own before her fingers climbed up his forearms; she tugged at the bindings of his bracers until he took the hint and leaned down to her. And he leaned down just enough for her to get her heels over his shoulders before she forced him down- not that she needed to given just how fast he had been to go to her to begin with.

Her hands moved to his face, pulling him against her open lips and mouth.

His hands moved to the table now, causing it to creak and shift underneath their added weight as he used the support it provided as leverage against her.

Somewhere in between the movement, he had pushed her legs from his shoulders and had tucked them into the crook of his arms- holding them out and open around him to prevent straining them instead.

And Kitana could feel each of his thrusts bearing down against her, taking advantage of the open positioning between them. She had thought he was putting his weight against her before, but now he really was. She could feel the sputtered breaths between them, a mix of gasping and sharp inhales taken just to pull in a quick breath of air.

She could feel the rumbling of his lips against her own with each moan.

She could feel his body grinding on top of her own, moving them both in synchronized motions- and moving the table with them, causing some of the abandoned scrolls around them to topple to the ground.

Her fingers clung to his face before they moved to his shoulders, feeling the heated skin underneath her touch and collecting his sweat against her palms.

Hanzo gripped at his vest underneath her, clenching a handful of the yellow material before he pulled it up and pulled her in with it.

There was one more thrust, and then another before Kitana felt him sink and spill himself inside of her. She felt his lips tremble against her own, and heard and felt the staggered moan that escaped into her mouth. There was a brief lull, a feeling of tension as his body seemed to brace against her for support, before he began to move again- pumping into her with added thrusts.

And the friction of him so close to her, bearing against her was enough to bring her to the edge as well.

Fingers raked against his biceps now as she felt the surge of heat that started between her legs before it rushed throughout her body- urged on by his continued thrusting against her tight walls. Her legs trembled and involuntarily convulsed against his arms, which he then pulled in tight; he locked her legs against him which only made the shaking more intense.

There was almost an odd moment of stillness that came after when all of it was done, and it lingered on even after the feeling had inched back into her legs.

Giving out a shaky exhale, followed by heavier gasps for air, Kitana slowly draped her arms over the back of Hanzo's neck and held him to her. And she felt the way he tucked his head into the curve of her neck, breathing steam into her already wet skin. That moment of clarity that followed after, that made her realize just how hot and sticky she felt, and how she didn't want to be reminded of just how sweaty she was, had yet to pass.

So she took advantage of the fog and let herself cling to him in the aftermath.

"How was that for you, Princess?" Hanzo whispered, his voice husky now as he pulled away, moving against her resistance- but with how hot-natured he was, she wasn't surprised that he was already dying to get some cool air on his skin. He moved just enough to free his arms from her legs, allowing her to drop them against his waist once more, before he settled himself on his forearms.

He still stayed close to her, just not too close.

"Can't recognize your own work?" Kitana teased in return, as she reached up to run her fingers loosely through his beard. Given how heated his face was, and how much sweat was rolling across his neck and shoulders now, she could only imagine that she looked the same.

Which meant that her mess of make-up was going to be a little hard to explain when they returned.

But she'd sooner admit to this than have someone make the assumption that she had been crying.

"Maybe we should... stick around for a little while longer," she continued. "We might have a little more time to spare."

"I thought you weren't interested," he reminded.

"Well, that was before we had a reason to enjoy ourselves here."


	2. Treasure Room- KungLao/Jade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Treasure Room  
> Pairing: KungLao/Jade  
> Costumes: MK11/ DragonFighter (KL) / Proper Attire (Jade)  
> Tags: MORE story, post-MKX AU, desecrating the artifacts, Explicit Sexual Content, Handjob, Cunnilingus, slight Femdom, mild angst
> 
> Summary: Jade heads out to Shang Tsung's island to explore the abandoned lair and the former Shaolin tags along with her. They find more than they bargained for inside of the hidden Treasure Room, where one of the artifacts helps bring to head old memories from their Revenant years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was never really a big fan of KungLao/Jade, but after seeing what MK11 thought was a good pairing for Jade, I jumped onto this train super quick. I haven't actually written anything solely based around Kung Lao or Jade, so I would say this chapter is my first attempt at writing either of them long-term. Probably not the best time to do so, so the characterization may be in and out of it.
> 
> I swear that I didn't intend to make the chapter THIS long but apparently I had a lot I wanted to explore. I'm gonna try and make the next ones super cut down because I myself can't keep doing this lol.
> 
> Also no, not all of the chapters are going to be connected, I just happened to make the first two semi-connected. Everything afterwards will stand on its own.

It had been two weeks now since Kitana returned from visiting Goro's Lair.

Jade had initially offered to go with the woman to provide support, but Kitana insisted otherwise. She didn't want to make a deal of the visit and was only going to stay long enough to drop off the burial arrangement Queen Sheeva had gifted to her. Still, Kitana expressed mild curiosity in wanting to know what still remained in the abandoned lair- especially considering that it had been a century or two since either of them had even thought about the island.

Shang Tsung had been an avid collector of more than just souls.

And the former Sorcerer was not without spoiling his Champion in the same riches.

So there was no telling just how expansive Shang Tsung's or Goro's wealth had become before their untimely demises.

Jade wasn't out looking for their wealth though. She was more curious about the prospect of old Outworld artifacts that might've been stashed away on the once heavily-guarded island- or maybe even some Edenian ones. Anything that they could bring home was worth looking for.

Kitana did agree that searching the lair was a good idea, but denied going to check it out for herself.

The Princess even expressed a sense of reluctance in going along with her.

Jade assured her that she didn't need the extra hands, and that she was well-equipped to handle the task on her own anyways.

And of course, what Kitana didn't know wouldn't hurt her.

While she was more than capable of handling things on her own, Jade wasn't above asking for a little company either. Having an extra person around would make exploring an underground, abandoned labyrinth a little less paranoia-inducing- and maybe even make it a little fun.

She dropped a remark about exploring the old island the next time she was on business visiting Earthrealm, proposing the idea as more of a toss-away thought- acting as though she was still thinking it over. It came across more like she was baiting the waters for a bite, but still- Jade figured it wouldn't hurt to try.

And surprisingly enough, Kung Lao offered to go with her the moment she brought up that she would be exploring the island alone.

[Well, maybe not _so_ surprisingly.]

[Hook, line, and sinker.]

"So Kitana told me about a funny little thing she found when she was here before," Jade spoke, breaking the silence between them as the two of them walked through the carved halls of the now-ancient lair. She did her best to avoid the low-hanging rocks and strung up skulls that seemed to decorate every hall they walked through- and she used her staff to knock aside the occasional spider web that threaten to touch her.

The boat ride to get to the island had been mostly quiet with a few light conversations spoken between them. And even then, their topics ranged from the cruddy weather to her unearthed sailing and navigational skills.

Jade supposed the elephant in the room was still too much for either of them to handle.

It wasn't often that the two of them crossed paths, let alone found themselves alone together- especially considering how much time she spent in Edenia most days, and how difficult it was to track him down in Earthrealm. Which made his offer of joining her seem more and more off-handed.

[As though she hadn't made the proposition in false hopes that Kung Lao would jump at the offer.]

But despite their lack of conversation, their lack of catching up, they were completely isolated here and she still felt comfortable in his presence.

"Yeah? Was it sitting on the throne back there?"

Jade clicked her tongue at him and lightly elbowed him in the ribs, hearing him laugh quietly to himself at his own joke now.

And she supposed she did walk the both of them into that one.

How quickly she had forgotten about the rivalry between him and Goro. It made her wonder then just why he wanted to be here in the first place. Perhaps it was to revile in the fact that he was alive again and had officially outlived his only opponent- which was both true and false in the same statement.

And how odd it was that she found herself stuck between two extremes in regards to someone's relationship with Goro.

Kitana had been a friend, an ally.

And Kung Lao, a rival.

"She said she found one of your hats here- or at least a copycat of one," Jade continued. "She thought someone might've tricked the Kollector into buying it."

When Kung Lao laughed again, it was a little louder and harder than the first.

"Oh yeah- no, that was me," Kung Lao admitted. "He wouldn't leave me alone about my hat, so I made a fake one to get him off my back- and it _worked_."

He laughed again, still clearly amused by his own scheme- and Jade had to admit that she found herself chuckling along with him.

Laughing still felt like a new expression, a new reaction to her given the years spent without it.

She had forgotten just how contagious it could be.

Or how delightful it was to hear someone else do it.

"I tell you, six arms and no brain on that one."

"Better than two arms, a hat, and no brain," she retorted.

"It's called fashion, _Jade_ ," he replied just as quickly. "Speaking of, you got a new look yourself."

Jade brushed a hand against the burgundy and green tunic that split and hung in four pieces from her waist, cut at the front and back of her thighs. It was a bit of a downgrade to what she had once worn before, with the only pieces of armor being her gauntlets and the thin plates at her shoulders. But the freely hanging fabric around her legs allowed her to move with ease- and created a bit of a breeze when she ran, which was an added bonus.

The cross-section of green fabric across her chest was the most extravagant part of the outfit, which suited her just fine.

She wasn't looking to make herself stand out; in fact, she wanted the complete opposite. And with this ensemble, she could blend and disappear into an Outworld crowd with ease. An Edenian one, not so much.

The added hood to her outfit protected her head and face from the Outworld sun, as well as kept her hair from getting in her way. And with how disarrayed the former lair had gotten, she was glad to have something covering her head- least some kind of crawling creep try to make a nest in her hair.

"I figured it was time for something new," Jade remarked, glancing to him briefly before she continued to navigate their way through the winding tunnel. "I'm an Edenian with an Outworld sense of fashion; it's a bit difficult to find a balance between the two."

"You look like a mercenary," Kung Lao commented- and she could tell by the bemused look on his face that it was meant as a compliment.

"I was aiming for Assassin, but I'll take it," she mused, before she looked to him once more- eyeing him down for a moment. "You look new yourself."

He was wearing a tunic of red and blue, with silver linings and accents that added a certain flair to his look. The tunic slipped over his shoulders in more of a poncho-style than traditional, leaving a great portion of his broad shoulders and chest exposed. The front of it cut down the middle of his chest, almost down to his ribs- and had it not been for the sleeveless, black shirt he wore underneath it, it would've made for a more alluring look.

It was an unique style, one that he had perfect for himself over the years; anyone could identify him by the look alone.

There were two belts wrapped around his waist that kept the layered tunic strapped to him, keeping it from flowing from too much movement; which given his inability to sit still, and his ability to teleport, the belts were needed.

It was a rather exposing uniform given his situation, seeing as he did little to hide the white scars that took place of where his Revenant skin carvings had once been. Knotted and visible against his healthier skin, the scars would've been a conversation piece for anyone who didn't know where they came from.

[She could even see a few scars left behind by her own armored nails.]

[And _those_ didn't need to be a conversation piece for anyone but them.]

Jade could still remember the feeling of surprise she felt when she saw him for the first time since the Jinsei incident; her first time seeing him as a non-Revenant in over two decades. It had been a year then after the ordeal went down, after they had all been exorcised of the dark energy controlling them.

She was visiting the Jinsei Temple to speak with Raiden, and Kung Lao had come out to greet her- not knowing that she was Raiden's guest.

And despite everything that had happened, he looked good.

His skin had regained its subtle bronze color again, a stark-contrast to the gray and decayed look from before.

He had even grown his hair out as well, now able to fit it into a ponytail again- abet much shorter than it had been earlier.

And while his eyes would never be the same as they were before, Jade had sensed a new look of life in them.

Twenty-five years frozen in the Netherrealm had given him this eerie, sort of frozen look of youth. He was technically in his fifties now, and yet hardly looked a week past his Tournament-era days.

And now, a year after that moment, he continued to look good- _better_ even.

"I know what I look good in," Kung Lao remarked, grinning now as he caught her eye.

Some things never change though.

"Even with that stupid thing on your head?" Jade questioned.

"It's called my hat- and it's not stupid."

She laughed and elbowed him again. "I was talking about the other thing," she elaborated.

"Oh, this thing?" he asked, as he tugged at the strap that hooked underneath his chin. "It keeps my hair out of my face- and keeps it from getting caught on my hat when I take it on and off."

It made perfect sense and seemed reasonable as to why he was wearing it.

But sometimes the most efficient things were rather ugly.

"You know, I haven't seen you throw your hat _once_ since we got here," Jade reminded.

" _Yet_."

It was odd how a single word could feel like a threat.

Still, the thought remained with her.

For a monk, Kung Lao had a flashy personality and a flashy sense of style; his trademark being his signature bladed hat. He had been a hit with it at the Tournament, and Jade wasn't above admitting that she too had been pulled in by his theatrics when he was in the arena. He always celebrated each victory with a hat toss, letting the blade catch sparks as it went around the walls of the arena.

His hat had made enough of an impact that the Kollector himself was interested in getting a hold of it- which was enough said on its own.

And yet, despite the open air of the ocean they traveled on to get here, and the open space of the island itself, he hadn't so much as touch his hat.

Jade could make assumptions for the reasons why, but they all pointed in the same direction.

Kung Lao had once served as Quan Chi's Executioner, and after the Warlock's death, he continued to serve the same under the Dark Emperor.

A flick of the wrist and he could kill ten Oni's with one hat toss.

And during the Earthrealm invasion of the Netherrealm, he had killed just as many Special Forces soldiers in one motion.

She didn't have to question if the memories still plagued him; she already had her answer.

Kung Lao had always been a happy, easygoing person before, despite the ribbing everyone usually gave him- and despite everything that had happened, he still seemed to put on a good front about maintaining that attitude.

But it was easy to tell when he was forcing that illusion, forcing himself to convince himself that he was happy.

But after living in a nightmare for twenty-five years, they all just had to take things day by day.

Herself included.

They both let the conversation go to silence as they focused on making their way through the narrow corridors, ducking in and out of the carved rooms as they went along. Most of the rooms seemed to have nothing in them- nothing more than old broken chests and discarded junk.

Jade was almost tempted to say that the place had already been ransacked, but with how neat things still seemed to be, perhaps any and all items had simply been moved around- perhaps to a safer location even.

It wasn't until they stepped into a much larger room did either of them speak again.

"What on... Earth?" Jade whispered, as they stepped into a heavy-lit room that was filled to the brim with items hung up on the walls around them. After seeing so many empty rooms, she was surprised to find one this decorated. "What is this place?"

"I thought you've been here before?" Kung Lao questioned, looking equally as surprised as she was.

"Sure, probably five thousand years ago," she replied, "- and I'm pretty sure this room didn't exist back then. Or maybe it did and I just never left the dining hall to look for it." Her eyes scanned the room once more, almost hesitant to step into the lit area before she did. "Well, I did tell Kitana that I would look around for any artifacts- and it looks like we've found them."

"Yeah, but what are they? And where did they come from?"

Jade looked long and slow at the different artifacts hanging on the walls before her eyes landed on the altar in the middle of the room, taking sight of where a large, crude, and primitive-looking sword was propped up in display.

She walked towards the altar and then carefully moved around it. Weapons on display like this usually had some kind of trap attached to it to prevent robbing- and a weapon like this wasn't something easy to come across; it would've made for a fine sale on the black market. She searched for a trigger of some kind to give her an idea of where the trap might be, but instead it lead her to notice the plaque underneath it.

Rubbing away at the layer of dust on it, she had to lean in to read the worn down engraving.

"Queen Sytholin's Blade, Queen of Zaterra," Jade read aloud, before she straightened up and looked back to the sword itself, and then looked over to him. "I wasn't aware Zaterra was its own realm."

"Reptile had a Queen?" Kung Lao questioned as he walked over to her.

"I suppose everyone did at one point," she shrugged, hesitating before she carefully reached out and touched the sword. There was an odd texture to it, sort of like bone- and it made her wonder if that's what it had been carved from. "Apparently wielding the sword allows you to control lesser-minded reptiles."

"Well, I got some bad news about that- there aren't any left."

"I guess it's down here because it's useless then," Jade replied, stepping back now before she looked around the room again; she still couldn't believe what she was seeing all around her. "I guess this must be a treasure room of some kinds- Kitana mentioned something about it before. Apparently Shang Tsung had a knack for collecting things- or at least, collecting things that Shao Kahn had collected."

"We all have our hobbies, I guess- and it's safer than collecting souls," Kung Lao shrugged in return, looking around the place himself before he turned back the way they had came in. "What's this one then?" he spoke, as he walked back towards a display they had missed when they walked in. "Hey, check this out, the Death Mask of Al'Sheva, the former Kytinn Queen. Killed by her own subjects after her defeat at Shao Kahn's hands."

"Good riddance," Jade scoffed, before she cocked her head at the odd mask on display. "It's a little small, isn't it? That carcass we saw in the tunnels here was huge compared to that mask."

"Do Kytinn start off as bugs and evolve to humans? Or are they parasites that take over human forms?" Kung Lao asked, as he reached up to touch the displayed mask- and then removed it from its stand.

Jade felt her heart lurch at the sight, still unnerved by the unguarded treasures and convinced that one of them had to be rigged.

And a weight displacement trap would've been easy to trigger with his actions.

"What are you doing?!" she hissed.

"Look at this thing- they just ripped her face off," he replied, ignoring her question and concern, before he held the mask out for her to see. "The next time we see D'Vorah, we should tell her this is what will happen to her."

Okay, he was still alive- and still seemingly naive on the dangers here.

Maybe it was possible that there weren't any traps here.

 _Maybe_.

She wasn't quite convinced, but surely if there was something here, it would've killed them by now.

"It's not a bad idea," Jade remarked, taking a breath to calm herself before she turned to examine their surroundings once more. And this time, she noticed the massive monument behind her.

It looked to be some kind of shrine built to the former Shokan Champion.

A bust of Goro was made from gold and was perched on top of a matching stand, which was then perched on top of an elevated platform and flanked by two massive Dragon Head medallions; a favorite symbol of Shang Tsung's from the Tournament. Eternal fire had been lit around the Dragon Heads, giving the shrine an oddly warm glow in the open room.

The floor around the bust was littered with gold and what looked to be partial skulls- no doubt once an offering to the deceased Champion.

This place must've been available some days following his death.

Which made her wonder just how recent this room itself had been.

Jade worked her way around the room from there, starting from the shrine and following the walls to go from item to time in hanging display.

There was an odd eight-legged disc of some kind that a plaque identified as being the Talisman of the Kafallah Warlocks. Jade hadn't an idea who they were, but apparently they tried and did succeed in controlling the Outworld ruling Kahn's for their own Netherrealm bidding. Or at least, until they were found out and executed for their actions.

The name didn't sound familiar in the slightest.

She wondered if they were before her time, but that would've placed them ten thousand years before- which if Shao Kahn had been the one to execute them, than maybe it had been.

But surely she would've heard about it during her studies.

Unless Shao Kahn had erased them from history as well, which was not uncommon for the former Emperor to do.

"Hey, does the name King Jerrod ring a bell to you?" Kung Lao called out to her.

Jade turned at the question and took note of where he was standing on the other side of the room, looking up at an artifact that had been displayed on an open shelf of some kind. "Yes, why?" she asked in response, unsure of how that name could at all be relevant all the way down here.

"Uh, this was his crown apparently," he replied- and this time he seemed to be leaving the artifact alone. "It says he was the final King of Edenia, so does that mean what I think it means?"

There was her answer then.

Shao Kahn must've kept the crown as a war trophy.

"If what you're thinking is that King Jerrod was the husband to Queen Sindel and the biological father of Princess Kitana, than you would be correct," Jade spoke.

"Oh." A simple response. "Uh, don't tell Kitana what this plaque says about it then- better yet, you don't read it either."

She chuckled lightly at the perceived sense of protection coming from the man, and ignored the sudden rush it put through her chest. "King Jerrod has been dead for ten thousand years; he never met either of us, nor have we met him," Jade assured. "He may be a comfort in principle, but that does not change the fact that he was dead long before Kitana could even support her own head."

If her words offered any comfort to the monk, she couldn't tell.

"It's a good find though, Kitana will be glad to hear that his crown has been found," Jade continued. "With Edenia back on its feet, it would be nice to have such a precious keepsake back- and I'm sure Queen Sindel will be happy to see it again as well."

"It says the crown's been passed down with each ruling King," Kung Lao remarked. "You think there's someone who would wear this next?"

"Hard to say," she shrugged. "There's a slim chance that Queen Sindel will wed again, so the weight of the crown might instead befall to whoever Kitana chooses- and the man that she would choose already wears a crown of thorns."

"I wouldn't speak of Grandmaster Hanzo so oddly like that. He more accurately wears a headband of thorns rather than a crown of them."

Jade snorted out a laugh before she went back to what she was viewing.

After the Talisman came the sight of a massive scepter hanging high on the wall, completely shadowing her. The thick hilt of the scepter was wider than her forearm and it's V-shaped blade widened out past carrying capacity for any normal human being.

Korloven Imperial Scepter, something that didn't even resonate as being anything familiar to her.

Whoever they were, they had met their fate at the Shokans's hands.

Next came the Osh-Tekk Baton of Victory.

Considering that it was down here in Goro's Lair however, there wasn't much victory behind it now.

A massive club of a weapon now collecting dust as an artifact rather than as a rite of passage.

But Jade felt her attention be pulled to something else- to a smaller artifact she had overlooked amongst the larger weapons hanging above her.

Drahmin's Mask was set between the two weapons, sitting in the shadows of them.

It was a grim reminder of the Oni Jade had seen only once in passing, and had done a good enough job at forgetting about. Her eyes scanned the plaque underneath it, reading out the story that didn't tell a happy ending. In fact, it didn't tell the correct ending either.

She could still remember the glowing bones that remained of the former Oni, heated by the magic Quan Chi had used to kill Drahmin with. His bones had glowed for three days before Kitana kicked them into a lava pit, stating that she was tired of looking at them.

It had been a firm reminder that, despite being some of Outworld's and Earthrealm's greatest fighters, they were all vulnerable and expendable to the Warlock. They served as slaves to Quan Chi's magic, offering no resistance to his word; if the Warlock so much as wished them dead, there was little they would do to fight the verdict.

The feeling still left a coldness in her fingertips when she thought about it.

Jade reached out and touched at the mask, feeling the oddly smooth texture to it. She traced the pointed horns that curved towards the back of the mask before she touched at the gaping mouth. To think, she had once thought the teeth to be real.

Given Drahmin's title of Master of Torture however, it wasn't out of the question to think that he would rip teeth out of a living mouth.

"Oh _wow_ -"

Jade felt the words yank from her thoughts before she turned towards his voice, forgetting about the death mask in her hands for now.

She watched as Kung Lao, once more, removed something from its display stand.

For a monk, this man had no respect for artifacts.

"Find something interesting over there?" Jade called out, watching as he jumped at her words- as though forgetting that she was still with him.

"Yeah, I- wow, I can't believe this thing is here- and that it's _been_ here this whole time," Kung Lao replied, before he turned to show her what he had pulled off the shelf above him.

And to her, it looked sort of like a... clay ball with sticks sticking out of it.

"What is that?" she questioned, shooting him a confused look.

"It's the Hearthstone of the Sun Do village," Kung Lao explained. "It used to safeguard the village from evil spirits- or at least, it did until Shang Tsung and Quan Chi destroyed it. They enslaved the whole village and used the villagers as labor to build Onaga's temple." He paused as he used part of his tunic to wipe away some of the dust covering the object. "It had been lost for centuries. Everyone assumed it had been destroyed. Li Mei always talked about making another one though- but she would be thrilled to have this one back."

Jade knew vaguely of the Sun Do village and of Li Mei herself.

The woman was an acting ambassador between Outworld and Earthrealm, on a small-scale anyways, and was a favored member of the White Lotus as well- although she didn't hold an official rank.

"You should give it back to her then," Jade spoke.

"Would Kitana know I took it?"

"Kitana doesn't own it, and neither did Shang Tsung or Goro for that matter," she replied.

There seemed to be a moment of hesitation, as though he had expected her to answer differently. "Good point," Kung Lao nodded, before he set the object back up on the shelf. "I'll grab it on the way out when we're done here."

Turning back to Drahmin's mask, Jade carefully lifted it off of its own stand- despite her own criticism of the action. She examined it in her hands before she looked over to where Kung Lao had moved back to the Queen Sytholin Blade. And at least in regards to the massive blade, he seemed content with just leaving it as it was- _thankfully_.

She found herself hesitating in showing him the mask, wondering if it would bring back too many unpleasant memories.

Neither of them knew Drahmin, they only knew of him from the show Quan Chi had put on with his execution.

But all it usually took was just one memory before the snowball effect took over.

Still, the curiosity of how this mask ended up here was too much for her to ignore.

"Look at this," Jade called as she turned to show him the mask.

And she watched as he turned to see what it was- perhaps curious to see something that she had found in this odd collection place, especially after his two more interesting finds.

And she got to see the look of realization that passed over him the moment he recognized what she was holding.

"Is that... what I think it is?" Kung Lao asked.

"Yeah," Jade nodded, looking down at the mask herself before she looked back to him. "The plaque is wrong so I'm wondering if this is a replica of some kind instead. I can't imagine how this thing would've ended up here."

"I don't know, he never really wore the thing around," he replied. "Maybe someone found it and brought it here- and someone else just happened to recognize it? Or maybe it's a really good copy-cat. I'm pretty sure Drahmin's was a little more beaten up than that, but that's not to say someone didn't touch it up to make it more appealing to sell."

All points were interesting to think on, whether or not they were likely to have happened.

Someone either had to go to the Netherrealm to get the mask, or came out of the Netherrealm with the mask.

And even then, what good word did Drahmin have to his name to make it such a collecting piece?

"Maybe," Jade mused, before she turned to put the mask back on its stand.

"You should put it on."

She paused for a moment, before she slowly turned back to him at the request, giving him another quizzical look. "... Why?"

Even Kung Lao seemed surprised by his own response, but shrugged in return to her question. "I don't know. Why not, I guess?"

His suggestion was outrageous and, above all, stupid- and yet, for some reason it felt like she physically couldn't put the mask back down now. It was more than likely a fake anyways, with its false story and too clean of a look to have belonged to Drahmin himself. And at the end of the day, it was still just a mask, nothing more.

It was enough to spark an idea in her head though.

They were the only people on this island; the only people who had been down here in decades- excluding Kitana's expedition out here anyways.

And as of now, they were probably the only people who knew about this treasure room to begin with.

So where was the harm in having a little fun?

After all, coming here served as a break that they both needed to get away for a little while- and this was the first time either of them had been alone with one another since serving as Revenants.

They could try to make better memories between them.

"I'll wear this mask if _you_ wear the crown," Jade offered in trade, now feeling as though she had a bartering coin in her hands.

"Oh come on, that's a little sacrilegious, don't you think?" Kung Lao objected.

"It's either the crown or the bug mask," she replied.

And she seemed to have him stumped with her response, offering him only two choices instead of a way out.

Jade could practically see the gears overworking in his head as he seemed to be thinking her bargain over.

"Are those my only choices?" he pressed.

"You could wear this mask," she spoke, as she held Drahmin's mask out to him.

And almost immediately, he held his hands up in a mock surrender. "I'll take the crown," Kung Lao quickly replied, before he slowly turned and walked over to where the crown was sitting. "But you cannot tell Kitana or Queen Sindel about this."

Jade chuckled at the remark, knowing well that such a thing would come back on her just the same. "And you can't wear your hat or that little cap thing under it either," she called after him.

She heard him give an audible groan and laughed once more as she watched him reluctantly hang his hat up on one of the shelves. The leather cap came off soon after and she cocked her head to get a better look at his hair, which was slightly loosened now from the movement. Jade watched as he reached up and slipped the crown off of its display before he carried it back with him- holding it firm in his hands, as though afraid that he might drop it.

"Well?" she pressed, as he came back to her.

"You put yours on first," Kung Lao started.

"I'm not going to be able to see out of this thing once I put it on," Jade reminded, as she held the mask in front of her face to demonstrate her point. If she positioned it correctly, she probably could see well enough out of the eye holes, but she wasn't going to risk missing out on the show.

And besides, if she already had the upperhand here, there was no sense in giving up the position.

Kung Lao rolled his eyes in disbelief but eventually gave in to her demands.

"Okay, okay- if this messes up my hair though, I'm gonna be mad," he chuckled before he moved to slip the crown on- and did so careful and slow. "Whoever this King Jerrod was, he had a big head," he remarked, as the crown set a little lower than it should have.

The lowered position caused the pointed portion on the front of the crown to dig into the bridge of his nose rather than rest on top of it.

"Or maybe it's just all Edenians."

"Well, the only male Edenian that I know of had the biggest head," Jade offered, "- it was mostly full of hot air though."

Kung Lao readjusted the crown as needed and as best he could, pushing the downward arrow to settle on the side of his nose rather than down the front of it. It took some adjusting and tweaking on his part before he seemed comfortable enough with its position. And when he seemed satisfied with its fit, he held his hands up next to the crown like an invisible frame. "Well? How does it look?"

And Jade felt that familiar rush in her belly at the sight of him.

"Oh, look at you," she mused, grinning at the finished image, "so regal-looking yourself- if you ever get tired of the monk thing, I'll let Kitana know how good you look in the Edenian crown."

" _Stop_ ," Kung Lao laughed as he waved her off. "Now you put the mask on."

Such a quick change of the subject, as though he was hoping she wouldn't see the flush of red across his face at her teasing.

And Jade might've been teasing him, but her words weren't without merit. There was no denying that, despite the years and torture of the Netherrealm, the man had held on well to his boyish good looks and charm. His face was mature but there was still this hint of mischievous innocence to it- although certainly no one would ever describe him as being innocent.

The silver crown fit well enough on his head, but adjusting it had caused some of his black hair to be pulled and strayed- causing the thin strands to loop in a hook against his brow and cheeks.

And she found herself having to resist the urge to reach out and brush them back into place.

It was hard to deny that him standing in front of her, looking the way he was, was doing something for her. It was hard to describe, but the rush of heat to her own face felt like a dead giveaway on its own.

Jade gave a subtle grimace as she looked at the mask in her hands before she carefully slipped it on, securing the holding band against the back of her head.

And almost immediately, she heard him start laughing again- which only made the heat of her face burn hotter.

"Now how do I look?" she questioned, although she was fairly certain that she already knew the answer.

"Oh, _very_ attractive, Jade," Kung Lao replied, "- and very fitting too, it's even in your color."

She framed the mask with her hands before she reached up and adjusted her hood to fit around it, carefully tucking her hair back as she did so. "How about now?" Jade spoke, hearing him laughing harder now as she fixed the mask to allow her to see out of the eye holes. And she was glad that the mask offered full facial coverage so that he couldn't see her grinning as much as she was in response to his laughter.

He wasn't forcing himself to be happy in this moment; he just was.

And it set off this pounding in her chest as she watched him.

"Pretty sexy, right?" she teased.

"It's- it's _something_."

Jade found herself laughing at how hard he was laughing at her, which was something that she hadn't done until now- and here of all places to do so. Despite their own recoveries, she still felt like she had to walk on eggshells around the other former Revenants.

It had taken her a full year before she could even look at Kitana again, let alone speak with her.

And it had taken longer before she could stand to be in the same room as Queen Sindel again.

And given her limited interactions still with the others, there was no telling how she would react around them.

But yet, with him, there was still this tender space that remained.

It still welled up in her chest from time to time when she saw him, as few and scattered times as it had been- and even if there was distance between them or no words even spoken.

She often wondered if he felt it too.

There was never really an appropriate time to bring it up, and she didn't feel like it was appropriate to speak about at the Jinsei just before they disembarked to get here. And while this still wasn't the best place either, it did separate them from any and all things that were familiar to them.

It offered itself as a blank slate.

Jade reached out and touched a hand to his shoulder before she pulled herself in, feeling the motion come all too naturally to her. "Come on, give me a kiss."

A bit of a bold strategy, but it was something to test the waters with- even if it was just a playful tease.

"No, no, no-" Kung Lao started, laughing through the words still, and barely giving her a fight as he stumbled away from her.

"Don't be shy," she teased. "I'm sure we could figure something out."

And there was something in his eyes that seemed to spark with life at her words.

And she watched as an all too-familiar looking smug expression came to his face.

"Sure- figure out how to catch me and maybe I'll let you kiss me."

There was no hesitation from her side that as soon as she watched him take off running, she went after him.

Jade was pretty certain that Kitana expected her to come here and explore the caverns for anything that might remotely be useful to them. And to her credit, she did find some valuable artifacts.

Then again, Kitana also expected her to be here alone.

But as much as she valued Kitana's opinion, again, what the woman didn't know wouldn't hurt her.

So here she was instead.

In the pit of Goro's Lair, sacking the treasure room that had been hidden for so long- and chasing Kung Lao around while she wore Drahmin's mask and he wore the old Edenian royal crown.

Sacrilegious was certainly a word for what they were doing.

[Although perhaps not a strong enough one.]

Jade chased the Shaolin around the middle altar at first, just barely able to keep herself a few steps behind him.

She could've easily ran him down, but then again he could've easily outran her just the same- or at least teleport out of her range.

But where would the fun had been in that?

And then things progressed.

Soon they were running through the carved out hallways instead, expanding their range to the other rooms of the lair. They never went too far though, preferring to keep to the rooms they had already explored- lest they run into something completely unprovoked and unprepared.

Sometimes their roles switched, and although Jade wasn't sure how it happened, she found that she still loved the adrenaline from a good chase. Her heart was pounding and she could feel the lightness of her feet even against the dirt and loose rocks underfoot.

In the moment, she just felt alive again.

She wasn't a bodyguard.

She wasn't a servant to an Emperor, nor was she a consultant between Edenia and Outworld.

Here, she was just Jade.

Quick-witted and fast on her feet, to no one's service but her own.

When they made it back to the treasure room, there was no hesitation as she bolted for him- determined to take him down this time. Kung Lao seemed to know what she was planning though and turned mid lunge to catch her.

It was a collided effort as they both hit the ground- breathing hard through their sputtered laughter now.

Jade wasted no time in getting him pinned underneath her, ensuring that he couldn't escape, before she reached up to push both Drahmin's mask and her hood back; she let the mask sit on top of her head to keep it out of her way. She could feel the sweat beading against her brow, bringing attention to the heat under her skin now.

Running wild in an enclosed, underground cavern didn't offer the most breathable scenario.

Jade could feel her heart pounding in her chest and in her ears, and rationalized that it was from the running, from the excitement- from that rush of adrenaline that was still pumping through her body. It was from the fact that she had 'won' their little race.

But as her eyes dropped to meet his own at their quieting laughter, the moment of silence that soon fell between them gripped at her in an entirely different way.

And suddenly the sound of her heart pounding in her throat now seemed to be coming from somewhere else.

There was a second of hesitation as Jade reached a hand out to brush his face before she found herself leaning down towards him anyways- and almost immediately, she felt his hands reach up to pull her in just the same.

If there was a kiss between them, it was brief and fell apart almost immediately.

Jade grabbed at him with her hands, with her fingers- digging them into his jaw and face as she worked her tongue into his mouth. And she felt the way Kung Lao gripped at her back; she felt his fingers digging and raking against the back of her shoulders and ribs, wrinkling the smooth material of her uniform underneath his palms.

There was no sense in denying the desperation that their hands gave away, as fingers gripped and clawed at one another, acting as though they were afraid one of them might get ripped away at any moment.

She was fully aware now of the pounding in her chest, of the ache between her legs; the same one that had been slowly growing every time she looked at him. And when Kung Lao pushed one of his thighs between them, she found herself pushing against it- aggravating the already persistent heat.

If pleasures were easy, she'd let herself go right here.

Every time she found herself pulling away, that voice of reason finally calling out to her, Jade felt Kung Lao tighten his grip on her before he yanked her back in. There was barely even air breathed between them as she felt his fingers push under her hood and grab at her braid, wrapping it around the knuckles on one hand.

But she felt herself claw at him just the same; she felt her nails dig into his cheekbones at even the slightest hint of him trying to resist her. And in the back of her head, she knew it was wrong.

But there was this possessive hold that wouldn't let her let him go.

It stemmed from a bad place, from hellfire at their backs and from a desperation to forget.

But they always wanted _this_.

The carnal sin of the flesh had been the easiest way for them to remember what it used to be like to be human and alive again- even though they had hardly ever spoken before their turn to Revenancy.

And maybe that was why it had been like an addiction before.

And why it still felt like it now.

It was only when Jade moved her hands, when she ran her fingers trough his hair, gripping the black strands tight in her hold, did she feel herself snap out of the possessive trance.

The realization washed over her like a cold water bath and she ripped away from him before either of them could fight it or each other again.

And in the stillness that came afterwards, she felt an overwhelming flood of guilt hit her.

Her head was still buzzing, unsure exactly of how to process the matter- how to process what had just happened between them. There was a split moment where she was fully expecting to see the hell fortress around them again, fully expecting to find them both locked back inside of the Netherrealm. And the whiplash from seeing their environment as anything _but_ that only made the situation feel worse.

It felt like they had done nothing but push each other the entire time they had been here, testing the boundaries between one another- wanting to test the waters to see how the other would react.

And while the waters were lukewarm, it was both inviting and uninviting all the same.

" _That_ \- we should not have- that shouldn't have happened," Kung Lao started, a firm sound in his tone despite his jumbled speech- despite the look of matching guilt on his face. He made the motion to pull himself out from underneath her, only to be stopped by the tangled mess of their legs, and her weight still on top of him.

To which he simply just let himself fall back to the ground rather than fight any of it.

Jade supposed she could've offered to move, but the offsetting exhale and the way he closed his eyes told her that he knew exactly how she was feeling about the ordeal too. And right now, that kind of affirmation wasn't something she was going to let go of- not yet at least. It had been years since she had last felt this vulnerable and even so much as moving made it feel as though the illusion of the past two years was going to fall apart.

She watched as Kung Lao raised his hands to touch at his face before he pulled them away, hissing softly at the bruised skin her fingers had left behind.

And it was then that she noticed the small punctures that littered his cheekbones and jaw.

And it was also then that she remembered the armored tips on her fingers, and realized she had been scratching at his face this whole time.

[Just like before.]

"We agreed that we weren't going to do this again," Kung Lao spoke, and this time there was no firmness in his voice- only a solemn tone of defeat instead.

"We said we weren't going to _talk_ about it," Jade corrected, perhaps unnecessarily.

Which really was the case here.

They had only spoken briefly after having the Jinsei rip the dark energy out of their bodies- and really it was just her who had told him that they were never going to speak about what they did.

At the time it was to protect herself, and him, from yet another act that they felt they couldn't control.

But it was different now and they couldn't keep ignoring the elephant in the room anymore.

"Okay, that's true- and to be fair, we haven't talk about it," he admitted, "- but skipping over the 'not talking' about it and just _doing_ it doesn't solve anything either."

That was a given.

"So we should talk about it then," she offered.

And there was clear hesitation on his part.

She didn't want to talk about it either, but they just didn't have that option anymore.

"Okay," Kung Lao agreed, slow with the single word of agreement, "let's talk about it- but not like this."

"Why not?" Jade pressed, unsure of how else they were supposed to talk about the things between them if not right after the fact- while the action was still fresh. They were both pretty vulnerable still and a little messed up on the emotional and logical side, which obviously made for the perfect atmosphere to talk things out. Even then though, it was better than just pushing it under the rug.

"Because if you keep sitting on top of me like this, it's gonna get a lot more awkward between us- and it's awkward enough as it is."

The remark was enough to break the mood as Jade laughed quietly at his expense and pushed herself back onto her knees; she used the altar as leverage to hoist herself back to her feet, feeling the slight shakiness in her balance now.

A hand brushed the wrinkles from her tunic as she stepped back, careful not to step on him as he worked himself to his feet next.

She watched as Kung Lao dusted himself off as well, fixing the way his tunic set against his shoulders before he looked back to her.

And instead of a sense of resolve, she felt something else inside of her go off.

That same possessive, greedy nature from literal seconds ago.

Jade pushed it back, hoping to ignore it long enough to make a conversation first.

But the moment she felt Kung Lao grab at her and pull her in, she didn't offer a fight.

She felt the heat of his mouth as he kissed her again and Jade moved her hands to his shoulders- instinct telling her to push him away, but everything else insisting that she pull him in.

And she did; she tangled her fingers in the loose folds of his tunic as she kissed him in return.

"We're supposed to be talking about this," Jade reminded, barely getting the words out from between their lips.

"We'll talk later," Kung Lao replied, "- on the boat."

"On the boat is good."

She brought her hands to cradle his jaw this time, mindful of her earlier work, as she pulled him in and held him against her. Jade felt the easy way his lips came apart against her own once more, kissing her in a way that felt warmly familiar. The gripping instinct from before had been dialed back, just enough to let them ease the moment on on their own accord.

His hands pressed against her body, fumbling as he instinctively looked for armor that wasn't there anymore- upsetting the routine they had once upheld.

And Jade found herself in the same predicament as she dropped her hands to mindlessly work at the straps on his chest-plate, only to feel his bare skin against her fingertips instead.

It should've been easier this time around.

No armor, no accidental cutting on the sharp spikes that used to reside on her hips.

No rush to get clothing off before someone had a chance to call for them.

And yet Jade found herself struggling to figure out his simpler outfit.

Fingers hastily worked to undo the leather belts from his waist, unhooking them with some provided assistance, before she tossed them aside with little regard. Her mind wasn't focused on keeping their clothes in neat piles as she tugged at his now loosened tunic. And her insistent pulling convinced him to pull away from her just long enough to strip the tunic off before he threw it over the Queen Sytholin Blade- for safe keeping.

But his lips, his mouth were back on hers the second the moment came back to them.

Kung Lao kissed her hard, tugging her into him as his hands worked to remove her belt as well- blindly tossing it aside when it had fallen from her waist.

Her fingers curled against his chest, feeling his black undershirt wrinkle underneath her hold before she raked her nails down the front of him. Jade felt him flinch at the motion, no doubt reliving the moments where she had done the same gesture against bare skin instead.

"So just to reiterate," Kung Lao started, speaking somewhere between them breaking for air, "are we really going to do this down here? And in this freaky room of all places?"

"Well, we were supposed to just be talking," Jade reminded, as she moved her hands back to his chest and pushed him up against the altar; a motion he offered no resistance to. "But you decided that you didn't want to do that."

"It's a little more complicated than just me deciding not to," he objected, "- and I don't think you get to just write yourself out of this decision."

She chuckled before she leaned back in and kissed him- feeling the way his lips grinned to match her own. "Besides," she continued, speaking between each short kiss between them, "we used to do worse in worse places."

It was best not to go into details with it, considering how much of it they were still trying to leave behind them.

But it didn't seem like she had to say anymore; he seemed to know exactly what she was talking about.

"Yeah, and most of those decisions were your idea- and you never took no for an answer."

"Yes, well I was very adamant-"

"Bossy," Kung Lao corrected.

" _Regardless_ of what you think, I think our decision here is clear," Jade replied.

She wrinkled his shirt in her grasp as she curled her fingers into it and took it by the handful. Crumbling it in her hold, she tugged the shirt up, pulling it out from where it had been tucked in, before she pressed the bundled mess against his chest.

"Now, take this shirt off while I'm still being nice to you."

"Surprise, surprise, you're still bossy," he remarked- before laughing when she pinched his cheek in response.

Jade watched as he pulled the undershirt off at her demand and tossed it over the altar as well, joining his tunic from before. She took a moment to take him in, taking in the knotted scar tissue that littered his chest and abdomen; the tissue was still a soft pink, making it obvious against his bronze skin.

Each scar represented where his skin had once been carved open, where the energy that possessed them would glow and fluctuate from- sometimes even burst from depending on how angry he was.

But there were other scars too.

Ones from skirmishes with the other Revenants, from inner-fighting amongst one another.

And some from her, where she had once dug her claws into him and held on, sometimes tearing into him when she was done.

Jade brought her hands to his chest and felt the coarse tissue under her fingertips, feeling the heat to his skin now as well. It was a gentle kind of warmth too; it wasn't heated by lava pools or by the blood moon, but just naturally- humanly. It was a far-cry from the stark-cold that used to settle across his skin, making it almost sting every time she touched him.

Moving against him, she tucked her head into the curve of his neck and pressed her lips against his skin. She felt the thundering of his pulse against her mouth and it felt a little too quick given the slow start between them. But if he was experiencing the same thoughts and memories as she was, she could understand the adrenaline rush.

And as Jade moved her hands over the scope of his body, she felt the tension in his shoulders and chest drop away.

She felt the way Kung Lao seemed to melt into her touch, giving away a vulnerable sense of relaxation he hadn't exerted before in her hands.

Whenever he moved his hands to touch her, Jade stopped them and put them back to his side- giving herself some time to get reacquainted with him without distraction. Fingertips traced the areas where she could recall seeing the lightning-like bolts of energy that crawled under his skin like veins, the ones that glowed and hummed on their own accord.

Her lips moved from the curve of his neck to the cradle of his collarbones, to his throat before she felt him tilt his head back as she touched at the vulnerable spot under his chin.

When Kung Lao made the motion to move his hands again, she let him.

And she felt the way they immediately touched at her waist before they slid around to her back, where his fingers curled into the dip of her spine; he grabbed at the soft material of her tunic, bundling it in his hold before he released it.

"How do you get this thing off?" Kung Lao whispered, his fingers running along the corset tying that ran up along her back.

Jade pulled back at the question, taking note that he had his eyes closed- clearly enamored with her pampering, before she leaned in to press her lips against his jaw. And just the same, he leaned into the motion.

"This is difficult for you?' she teased, as she moved a hand to cup the other side of his jaw and tilted his head in towards her.

"Armor doesn't get damaged if you throw it- but you might break my fingers if I rip this thing," he replied.

"Just grab it from the bottom and tug it outward," Jade assured, "- it won't rip."

"I don't know, I'm pretty strong."

She rolled her eyes before she tilted his head down to her and brought her lips to his own.

There was a rough tug before she felt the corset hold immediately give away, causing the form of her tunic to go slack.

His hands touched at her back before he moved to pull the armored pieces off of her shoulders and blindly set them aside on the altar behind him. And when he went to remove the armored support from underneath her breasts, she felt the way he touched over them first before he pulled the thin metal piece off.

His fingers brushed against her face before he pulled away from her, just long enough to remove her detached hood. And he seemed to go out of his way to keep from touching Drahmin's mask, which she still had on- unfortunately.

Jade felt his hands grab at her waist once more before they moved down to find the spliced cuts in her tunic- and slipped under them. And she shivered at the warm brush of his hands against her bare thighs, feeling the way he lingered with the touch. His fingertips circled against her skin, pulling out another shudder before he moved to grab at her tunic.

Bundling it in his hold, Kung Lao pulled it up to her hips and then her waist- and then had her assist him in pulling it off completely, carefully pulling it over her head before he tossed it over the altar.

It left her in little more than the thin bodysuit she wore underneath it- as well as her gauntlets and stockings.

She could feel his eyes on her, roaming over bared skin now, and she started to make a comment, curious if he still remembered her this way.

"Is that what mine look like?" Kung Lao questioned instead.

Jade felt how his fingers brushed against the flat of her sternum with the question and moved a hand to where they lingered. And she felt the same scarred tissue on her own skin, the same reminiscence of her own carvings. They were faded more than his were, but they were still visible nonetheless.

"Almost," she replied, as she moved a hand to his chest now, touching at one of the scars that curved over his ribs. "Never seen your own before?"

"I feel them more than I see them," he remarked, "- and I haven't seen anyone else's."

"Realizing they weren't as invisible as you thought?" Jade asked.

Kung Lao gave a quiet laugh, which had a hint of sounding nervous now. "Yeah, just a bit," he admitted. "Maybe I should start wearing sleeves."

"And hide what you have to offer?" she teased as she moved her hands to cup his face.

"You make a fair point," he replied, before he pulled her in and kissed her again.

Jade felt his hands brush against her skin and body now, roaming over her- raking, squeezing, and taking hold where they could, mimicking gestures that had once been so natural between them. His hands were firm as they rolled against her, teasing her as they grabbed at her hips, at her breasts- teasing her through the thin material of her bodysuit.

She couldn't ignore the oddity between them, in feeling the way he touched her so carefully- yet confidently.

They had both made progress in separating themselves from their Revenant actions- and yet this almost felt like a step back.

But as Jade felt his lips move from her own to her jaw to her throat and then into the curve of her neck, she didn't really care for the setback.

She moved to run her fingers through his hair, cradling the back of his head as she leaned in and pressed her lips against his shoulder in return. And she took the moment as it was, with just the two of them here- standing half-naked in some forgotten treasure room, but that was besides the point.

Pushing forward, Jade pressed him against the altar once more, this time focusing on his hips as she forced one of her knees between his thighs. She turned her head to kiss at his jaw as she snaked her hand between them and rubbed her palm against his groin. There was a quiet groan from his throat in response, and given just how well she could feel him through his pants, she wasn't surprised how he reacted.

With him already partly pinned, she worked to get the front of his pants tugged open- and once she did, she wasted no time in wrapping her fingers around him. Jade felt the way his lips came apart against her neck as another groan vibrated from his throat, before he pulled away from her. And she moved a quick hand to cup his jaw, a little forceful this time, as she worked to hold him in place.

There was little struggle at first as Kung Lao seemed more concerned with trying to adjust his footing while her knee limited his movements; he hardly fought the subtle tugs she gave to his chin when he tried to turn his head against her hold.

"If you're going to do this, just- please be careful," he started, his voice already a little husky.

"Yeah? And why is that?" Jade pressed, as she leaned in closer to him, pushing her knee up higher between his thighs. She could already see the hint of red across his cheeks- and she could see it quickly spreading across his face. Red was difficult to see against grayed skin, and she realized now just what she had been missing out on.

"Because you're still wearing your claws."

Jade stopped mid-stroke at his words, remembering now the armored tips she still had fitted to each of her fingers- which were each wrapped around his cock. And she remembered the cutting marks on his face, now slightly bruised and inflamed from before.

Subconsciously, she was good at keeping the claws under control, but this might've been pushing it a bit.

Especially now that she was aware of them.

"You can keep going," Kung Lao continued, "- you've kept them on before."

"They don't bother you?" she questioned.

"I'm not going to answer that directly."

Jade felt her curiosity peak at the response. "Oh?" she mused, putting on a curious front as she slowly continued with her stroking- feeling the way his thighs shuddered against her in response. "Am I learning something from this?"

"We can talk about it later- on the boat," he deflected, and quickly at that.

"That's cheating," Jade retorted, gently squeezing his chin with the words, "but I'll let you have it, for now- but I will be expecting an answer."

"And I'm sure I'll have it figured out by then."

Pulling him forward by the chin, she brought him into a loose kiss as she let her fingers slowly run down the length of him. She could feel the way his lips parted, not always with a moan, but sometimes with a hard exhale. And she clung to every sound, to every response he gave her- forging new memories of him to overwrite the old ones.

She kissed him once before she gently tilted his head back, moving her fingers to hold underneath his jaw, just barely squeezing at his throat. Jade felt one of his hands move to cover it, felt the curling motion of his fingers as Kung Lao took hold of her hand. And it wasn't until then that she realized how sensitive he still was about his neck being touched or grabbed at. And even if it was her, even if they were like this, that fear still hovered in the back of his mind.

But his grip loosened soon after, and rested against her hand instead.

She let her eyes trail down along his body, catching the jolted way his abdomen moved with each breath, with each hard exhale caught on his lips. She watched as her fingers, wrapped firm around his cock, stroked the length of him again and again. With a visual now, she could see just how dangerous of a game she was playing as her armored nails curled around him.

There was more control to be had now though, as she brought her hand up and carefully moved the flat of her thumb to rub against the tip of him. And almost immediately, she felt him squirm; she felt the vibrations from the stammered groan in his throat against the palm of her hand. She circled her thumb against him as she pushed his cock against his bare abdomen- allowing him to feel the tip of her nail as it lightly scraped against his stomach.

Angling her thigh between his legs, she pushed her own body closer, eventually pressing herself against him- sandwiching his cock between them. And from there, she lightly rocked her body against his, using the movement from her thigh and abdomen to compliment the stroking from her fingers. She felt his hand move from hers to the altar behind him, gripping it almost white-knuckled now.

Jade rocked him into a rhythm, moving herself steady and slow against him- ensuring he could feel every rolling motion of her body on his own.

She moved the hand at his neck and leaned in to press her lips at his throat, feeling it vibrate underneath her touch.

She felt the rest of his body shudder as he came under her influence; she felt his hips push against her own and felt one of his legs dig into hers as well.

There was a sharp gasp from his lips that stammered into a few sharp exhales as the climax worked itself through his body.

She slowed her rhythm down but continued to rock against him until she felt the tension in his body slowly ease off again. Reaching up, she grabbed him by the chin before she eased his head down and brought him to her lips. Jade could feel his hot breath against her and felt the open way he kissed her, still pulling in a few hard inhales between each one.

"Should I disengage the claws for you?" she teased, as she gave him one more playful stroke- surprised yet not entirely to find that he was still hard in her grasp. "Or do you want to go another round?"

"Disengage, disengage," Kung Lao replied, chuckling lightly with the words, as he moved a hand between them to unravel her fingers from him. "I'm gonna pass out if you do it again."

"So nothing new," Jade remarked.

"That time was different, and you know it," he started. "But since you've already up the ante here-"

Kung Lao didn't finish his sentence and instead moved to hook an arm around her body, before he pulled her in for a more serious kiss- which she gladly accepted.

And when he pulled away from her, Jade felt the heat of his mouth kiss at her jaw, at her throat and her neck, keeping her focused on him.

Enough so that she didn't feel his hand moving until it was already between her legs.

She jumped at the touch, sucking in a hard breath as she felt his fingers rub against her through her thin suit. Kung Lao explored her with a few broad strokes, focused more on simply tracing her shape, which was shamelessly evident by how wet she was- and by how the thin material had been pulled between her lips now. It felt like the throbbing between her legs moved with the stroking of his fingers as he pushed them between her folds.

He rubbed his fingers against her clit, using the bodysuit to dull the sensations- causing her to grind against his fingers in order to just feel something.

Jade knew he was doing it on purpose, which only frustrated her with how easily he could bring her so close- which she supposed was justified.

Her hands moved to grab at his arms and then his shoulders as she bounced between focusing on his fingers and his mouth. She chose to focus on his lips for her own sanity, as they moved to the dip of her collarbones, to the flat of her sternum, and then between her breasts. She stepped back, giving him room to work and enjoying the equal pampering as Kung Lao trailed down her body, slowly sinking down to his knees as he did so.

It wasn't until she felt one hand squeeze the front of her thigh, the heat of his mouth against the contour of her hip that she snapped back to attention and put together what he was doing.

" _Oh_ \- that's what you meant," Jade whispered, pushing up on her toes now as she felt him slowly pluck her suit from between her folds and tuck it aside.

She moved a hand to grip at the altar for support as she felt his fingers push between her labia again, this time immediately coating himself in her arousal. The throbbing was a physical ache now, and as his fingers continued to stroke and rub against her, it was almost enough to take care of it.

"I thought you wanted to up the ante," he replied.

His words were accompanied with his fingers pushing against her clit, causing her to almost knee him in a jerked response- and Jade felt one leg almost give out as the heat of his mouth joined in soon after. The sensation alone forced her to grip at the altar with both hands now; a staggered moan escaping from her throat. She felt his tongue run flat and broad against her clit, while his fingers continued to rub at her folds, spreading them apart with his touch.

She could feel the wet contact between his lips and her own.

"- unless you don't want me to-"

"Shh," she interrupted, as she grabbed at the back of his head and pushed him back against her. She felt his hand move to the back of her thigh with the motion, and took the hint as she moved her leg to hook over his shoulder. "Stop talking."

Squeezing at his shoulder, Jade shifted her weight forward and re-angled her hips, working herself against his mouth now as she rocked slightly on her planted heel. A quiet moan escaped her lips as she felt the wet heat of his tongue as it stroked and rubbed against her; she felt his fingers as they continued to push back and forth between her folds.

And it was the slow, circling motions paired with the occasional suckling from his lips that kept her focus solely on him, that kept her worked up but only to a degree.

The foreplay was enough to keep the aching at bay, to tease her with the idea.

It was enough to convince her that she wanted to be here, and that she wanted him in the same manner as she had before.

Jade eventually moved to brace her forearms against the altar as she leaned into him, fingers partly curled into the loose clothing they had tossed over it.

She reached one hand down to tangle in his hair, gripping at it as she continued to roll her hips across his open lips.

Somehow it never felt this good before.

The heat that flushed under her skin was starting to make her feel light-headed now.

"Stop-stop," Jade whispered, barely able to get the words out as she felt herself on the edge of exactly where she wanted to be. She felt Kung Lao pull away and carefully worked to free her leg from his shoulder without falling on top of him. The heat dripping from between her legs was hard to ignore and it took longer than she thought it would for the feeling to work down- to where it felt like she could move without feeling as though she'd cum at the slightest muscle movement.

Feeling a somewhat sense of control over herself, Jade stepped back before she practically dropped herself onto his lap and yanked him into a kiss.

And she heard the quiet groan from his throat when she did.

His mouth was hot and wet from the mess between her legs.

"Are you telling me you actually like that?" Kung Lao mused, somewhere between her hands gripping at his jaw again, and his lips being bruised by her own. "I thought that was just something-"

"Shh," she interrupted once more.

Jade grabbed him by a fistful of his hair and used it as a stronghold to get him to re-navigate his position. Pulling the both of them away from the altar, she made sure there was ample room before she pushed him onto his back against the ground. There was no surprise that he went easily along with her.

"Edging yourself is one thing, but please no hair pulling," Kung Lao remarked, when she inevitably released him. "It took me a long time to grow it back."

"And how good it looks on you," she replied, as she carefully brushed it away from his face- as best she could anyways, with the crown still on.

And for a second, with the two of them like this, it felt like there was another moment of clarity.

Which only reinforced the moment as it was.

His hands eventually brushed against her arms, slow at first, before they climbed up to wrap around her biceps and pull her down to him; a motion she went into with ease. Jade kept her hands against his chest as Kung Lao pulled her lips to his own. He kept each kiss short, doing just enough to brush against her lips without making full contact between them.

It was a gesture she knew well.

It used to be as close as they would get in terms of kindness between one another.

"Are we still doing this?" she whispered.

"We got this far," he replied, moving a hand to brush the loose strands from her face now. "It'd seem kind of arbitrary to back out now."

Jade chuckled and moved to be more forceful with a few of the embraces, kissing him longer than he intended, before she pushed herself up and settled back against his waist.

"Fair warning, once I start, I'm not stopping," she spoke, as she pushed herself up to her knees now.

"You act like I don't already know this."

Wrapping her fingers around his cock again, Jade kept one hand on his abdomen for balance as she positioned herself over him. She felt his hands grab at her hips as she did so, feeling the subtle squeeze that let her know he was ready for her. And with that, she carefully lowered herself onto him- feeling the tip of his cock push against her folds before she eased it back and lined it up with her body.

With the weight of her hips pushing down, she felt him breach her with ease.

There was a shared shudder between them at the contact, one that had his hands squeezing at her hips while her knees dug into his sides, before she continued to take him.

His hands served as a guiding motion, ensuring that she didn't drop herself entirely on him in one-go- although the temptation was certainly there.

And the moment she had settled against him, she felt herself relax at the heat that began cultivating in her belly once more.

It almost felt odd to be here again, to be in this position with him.

But the feeling washed away when she placed both of her hands on his abdomen and shifted forward, easing some of the weight off of her knees, only to feel the way he seemed to throb inside of her. And it made her desperate to feel him in motion, to feel herself in movement against him.

Jade used her knees to lift, to move her hips as she rocked against him- starting with a slow grinding motion before she leaned forward to better lift them. Giving herself a few slow and easy thrusts, she warmed herself up to him, getting herself back into the saddle of things before she began to work out a rhythm.

And the weight of his hands remained on her hips, guiding her just enough to take his needs into consideration too.

When the rhythm felt right, when the thrusting between them seemed steady, she moved her hands to his chest for added support- leaning herself forward to create a better angle.

And it was there she remembered the faint scars on his chest from the times before, when she had been like this before- from when she had raked her armored nails into his skin and let him bleed from them. There had been a lot of anger then and he had offered no objections to her methods; a bit of a far-cry from how they were handling things now.

Even with similar armored nails, she kept them light on his chest, focusing her weight more on her palms than on her fingers.

Which seemed to match his preference, as Kung Lao moved one of his hands to cover one of hers; his fingers risking the entanglement with her claws.

Jade rode on top of him, hearing their scattered moans filling the empty room around them.

The feeling of him inside of her brought forth that same heat from before, the one she had denied from his mouth. She had only put it off just enough, edging herself just enough to feel it before she denied it. She was a little surprised that she didn't cum the moment he entered her; something she was certain he'd never let her live down if she had.

She thrusted against him a few more times before she stopped and leaned back to settle herself on his waist once more- just long enough for her to pull her legs out from underneath her.

"Cramp?"

"Shut up."

Digging her heels into the ground, Jade used the counterweight to elevate her movements, thrusting from a different direction now. And she felt his hands hook underneath her opened thighs, pulling and pushing her with each thrust as he worked underneath her- countering her thrusts with his own.

Moving one hand back to rest on his thigh for balance, she moved her other to one of his, gripping at his already tense fingers as she felt the weight of him underneath her.

Jade kept her focus on the rhythm as she let herself be lulled into the shared motions between them- trying to ignore the beads of sweat she could feel rolling down her body. Her own breathing had become heavy and she could hear the stammered gasps from her lips as it felt like she was forcing every muscle in her body to work; her back and thighs felt tight from the position, and she could feel the arm she had propped against his thigh already shaking.

And it only got worse as she felt his hand run down her thigh before Kung Lao moved it between her legs, cupping his palm against her pubic mound.

It was just at the right enough angle that she felt her clit rubbing against him now, which caused her to shake enough to offset their rhythm. And the jagged thrusting that came after was more about her pressing herself against his palm as she shifted forward against him.

Rubbing herself against him, she realized that it didn't take long before his palm was wet, which only allowed slicker motions for her. He countered it by pressing tight against her clit, ensuring that she felt the way it rubbed against him with every every little movement.

And that shift of focus was all it seemed to take to throw her completely off.

Almost immediately, her legs gave out and Jade felt herself drop onto his hips as she felt the climax hit her head-on. Her thighs instinctively moved to close, stumbling through the motions given her position and given how badly her legs were shaking. But she felt his hands move to her thighs before Kung Lao pushed them together and eventually held them closed - which only seemed to intensify the experience.

She couldn't hear what sounds she was making over the pounding in her ears as she leaned back and braced both of her hands against his thighs- pushing them down under her weight.

The heat that spilled from her belly surged through her body and turned every sense of touch into an odd numbing sensation, both dulling and intensifying her senses in one-go.

It felt like it took minutes before she could breathe again- and even then it was mostly heavy gasps and a few choked exhales. Jade could feel the subtle ache in her body now from how rigid her muscles had become during the orgasm; she didn't even realize she had kicked one of her legs out, placing it above his shoulder now, until she saw it for herself.

There was an odd sense of tension in the silence afterwards.

Jade slowly moved a hand to wipe the sweat from her face, trying to figure out if she wanted to move just yet or not.

It was only when she felt the tight pressure of his hands release from her thighs did she figure that it was okay to.

"Don't move," Kung Lao whispered at the slight hint of her repositioning her leg. "For the love of the Gods, please don't move."

She gave a breathless chuckle as she watched him lean his head back and seemingly try to catch his own breath. While she had gotten caught up in her own thing, she didn't know if he had finished just yet. But given his response, she didn't have to linger on the mystery for long.

Jade waited until he moved a hand to brush against her thigh before she made the motion to stretch both of her legs out- trying to avoid a painful cramp that was already pulling tight in one calf. When she barely shifted the connection between them, she could feel the wet mess between her legs- and knew that it wasn't all just from her.

"So," she started, unsure exactly of where to go from there.

There didn't really seem to be an appropriate topic to follow up with after what they had just finished doing.

"We definitely... did not do justice for these artifacts."

She reached up at the remark and felt Drahmin's mask that had somehow managed to stay on despite their activities; she had completely forgotten about it by this point. And the realization that it had been on the entire time was a little disturbing now that she thought about it.

"You know what I mean," Jade pressed.

Kung Lao brought his hands to his face, covering it for a moment before he wiped the sweat from his brow. "It's gonna be a long boat ride home," he started.

And she swore there was a hint of exhaustion in his tone- possibly one that wasn't caused by their recent deed.

"And it's gonna be _really_ hard not to do this again while we're trying to talk about it."

She laughed at the remark, glad to have the break in mood. "We can still do this and talk," Jade offered, "- the initial temptation is out of the way now."

"That is no guarantee," he replied.

Also possibly true.

At this point they might have to consider getting a mentor or a peacekeeper to watch their conversation- but she feared for the person's safety should they try to get in-between them.

"I need a shower," Kung Lao remarked.

They were both pretty well covered in the dust and dirt of the abandoned lair, which perhaps was a hazard all on its own.

But the layer of sweat they were both drenched in only made the coating feel worse.

"Well, there's always a dip in the ocean," Jade spoke, knowing well that he wouldn't be able to pass that up. "Or-" and she teased the single word by gently nudging his head with the tip of her boot, "we could drop by the Grotti shrine on the way back to Earthrealm."

"Once more, sacrilegious," he replied. "But it should be late by the time we get back, no one would be around."

She smiled lightly at the sound of reasoning in his voice.

"I won't tell, if you don't."


	3. The Pit Bridge- Skarlet/Rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Pit Bridge  
> Pairing: Skarlet/Rain (BloodRain)  
> Costumes: MK11/RavenousFeeder(Skarlet)/MKX/default (Rain)  
> Tags: Established relationship, background stuff, Explicit Sexual Content, Oral sex, Cunnilingus, Blowjob, unhealthy relationship standards, Masochistic tendencies, Tentacles, minor biting, blood, Comic mentions, lot of fucking tbh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once more, I have zero writing experience with either Skarlet or Rain, so this was yet another jump into a pairing that apparently I had a lot to say about. Again, characterization is probably gonna be in and out, although I think I got it pretty stable for the most part. 
> 
> As for where this pairing came up, I don't really have an answer. I always thought their powers were pretty similar and it was sort of a situation where I didn't have a standard pairing for either character so I just sort of pushed them together. The story idea came from the fact that you can see Rain and Blaze fighting on the other Pit Bridge, so honestly like the idea writes itself from there. 
> 
> I'll be honest, I'm not entirely happy with how this turned out but I've been working on it for a month and I've been neglecting other stories so I could finish it, so I just want it to be done.

Skarlet figured that, had she known ahead of time that she would be waiting for this long, she would've brought something to preoccupy herself with.

She could only take so many walks around the island before being reminded of the growing pangs of hunger in her belly.

The trip to get to this cursed island had taken her longer than expected, longer than how she once remembered it taking. Then again, travel was also more complicated than it used to be as well- especially given the dilapidated state of the island now. The lingering force field around it had barely weakened with the passed decades, but the magic used to keep it strong had become unstable and had started to seep into the environment surrounding the island.

Dark waves crashed constantly against the shoreline; they were strong enough to have wiped out most of the decaying docks just outside, which only added to the struggle of getting here.

Just as well, there was evidence of where the waves had claimed more than just a few boats that had gotten too close, having swallowed them whole and sunken them into the murky waters below.

Having managed to avoid sinking herself, as well as finding a place to dock, she was more irritated at the time wasted than anything else. Especially given how she was expected to wait even longer now.

But at least the sight of the old Tournament grounds was still as delightful as it had been decades before.

It was no longer as extravagant or as flashy as Shang Tsung had once kept it, but the memories and the energy of the place was still alive around her.

Skarlet remembered how the arena had once been slathered in blood, fight after fight- death after death.

Despite the years, she could still recall how the Tournament guards frequently had to get involve with some of the fights to keep the kombatants from attacking the audience. It always ranged from the audience either jeering the kombatant, or cheering for their opponent; or once before it was because the kombatant was still hyped on adrenaline and blood lust after slaying his opponent- at Shang Tsung's request, of course.

Her birthplace was here.

In the blood; an amalgamation formed from the bodies discarded in the Flesh Pits.

She remembered having to crawl out of that same pit.

Her body still warm from the magic used to create her; a new brethren to those who had been created and had crawled from the very same pool before her.

But she wasn't here for the memories.

Pacing the thin bridge once more, Skarlet condemned herself to picking one of the metal-sculptures that lined the border to lean against- mindful to keep her balance steady as she made herself comfortable. Or at least, as comfortable as one could be given the surroundings.

After all, one little slip and she would find herself plunging down into the blood river below.

Although doing so wouldn't be such an awful fate for her.

In fact, at this point, she'd rather enjoy doing so- irregardless of the quality of the mixed blood.

[Anything would be good enough to stave off her hunger right now.]

Once settled, Skarlet kept her eyes on the opposing bridge on the other side of the gaping Pit, watching the barely-visible silhouettes going back and forth at one another- trading blows and swings between each set.

She had been watching the kombatants for some time now, desperately needing something to occupy her time with while she was here. Although it seemed like every time she was on the verge of losing interest in the match, half-convinced to just visit the Pit grounds herself, something would happen between the fighters to draw her back in to watching.

And each time, it was always the massive glowing fireball of a figure that would bring her attention back to the front.

The man, the creature, _whatever_ it was, would erupt into a show of open flames to try a new technique in catching his opponent off-guard.

And of course, Skarlet found herself curious enough to see if it would change the tides of the battle each time.

The other kombatant was at least smart enough to think on his feet to combat each new change- although he skirted by the skin of his teeth at times, which only made her nervous.

She could see the steam billowing between the two fighters with each new hit, which created a cloud of vapor around them as they fought- which made it a little difficult to watch from her end.

Rain's water powers were neutralized against his opponent's fire power- and vice versa.

Which meant that neither of them were getting anywhere.

[Which meant that she was just wasting her time here.]

Why she had bothered to accept Rain's offer of meeting him out here, on this island of all places, was well-answered- and perhaps that was why Skarlet was so annoyed with it.

Rain knew that she needed to see him, and thus could offer any place of his choosing- because he knew that she would go wherever he asked her to. And of course, after agreeing to meet here, on this now desolate island after some back-and-forth debating, only _then_ did he choose to inform her that he had a prior engagement here- and that she would have to come second to it.

He had spun some kind of tale about having a fight scheduled beforehand, but she figured he had just been lying through his teeth about it.

Unfortunately, seeing as such really was the case, Skarlet knew that she'd have to hear about her own complaints coming from the mouth himself.

Still, as much as her annoyance kept Rain on thin ice at the moment, she couldn't help but to keep a sharp eye on him throughout his skirmish- especially whenever the other kombatant would blow out a burst of fire.

After two near-death experiences involving fire, Skarlet couldn't understand why Rain would still choose to go up against yet _another_ fire-bearer. Especially considering this one seemed able to vaporize his water abilities mid-attack.

Skarlet hated how each burst of flame made her skin crawl, forcing her to scratch at it like an itch.

Rain had been scorched down to nothing but raw skin with the first incident, having been struck down by a fully-powered sun strike from the Sun God himself. The fact that he had survived the attack to begin with was a testament to his bastard bloodline- but even that had barely been enough to save him.

He had been near-death then, although he would recount it as being less severe to her later on- and had Skarlet not gotten the full story about it from Mileena, years later of course, she might've believed Rain's version of it for too long.

The second near-death had been through a more crude, barbaric method, where he had been burned at the stake instead.

Once more, it had failed to kill him.

And once more, he downplayed that he had never been in any real danger.

Skarlet never saw any of his actual wounds, but she did see the scars and heard of the stories behind his back.

She had tasted the smoke in his blood though and hated the burning sensation it had left in her mouth.

With hope, whatever skirmish this was between the two, it wouldn't end as every other experience with fire had- lest she be the one to deal with it.

Skarlet didn't keep track of the time, but it might've been another half-hour before the fight seemed to extinguish itself out. Whoever, or whatever, the glowing figure had been, it simply dissipated into thin air without leaving so much as a smoke cloud behind.

And she watched as Rain's silhouette disappeared soon after as well.

She counted the seconds it took before he re-appeared on the same bridge as her, emerging through a puddle of water at his feet.

"Well, well, look who decided to drop by after all," Rain spoke, as he made his way towards her.

And Skarlet hated the purred allure in his voice.

She hated the way he walked with this full-on strut that seemed to accent every part of him- and it was a walk that he had obviously perfected, showcasing himself with every step he took.

It made her far too weak in the knees watching him, more so than she would ever be willing to admit to.

It didn't help that he looked absolutely ridiculous in his uniform- if one wanted to call it that.

A blend of purple and gold, which had been his trademark colors for as long as she had known him. He liked to change up his style from time to time, but he always kept to the same colors- and he was always one to remark that he knew what he looked good in.

And this particular outfit seemed to emphasize that as it clearly invited all wandering eyes to gaze upon him, which was exactly what he wanted.

Rain wore little more than a thin cape that barely covered his chest with a metal armor-piece that barely covered whatever was left. The risky choice left his broad shoulders and arms bare, save for the heavy-looking bracers he wore on his forearms- but even then, he left his hands exposed.

The patch-work of cover showed off the curve of his pecs, the thick build of his abdomen, which was only just barely covered beneath a metal belt that encircled his waist. A purple bracer around his waist went up along the sides and back of his ribs, which only seemed to further the obvious cut out of his torso.

The most covered part of his body was his face.

He kept it shielded behind a trademark Edenian veil and a golden headpiece that resembled a crown, which wasn't very subtle; the whole ensemble revealed only his eyes through the layered metal. His thick black hair had been pulled up into a ponytail and folded over into a bun, just barely avoiding being pinned down underneath the headpiece.

There were so many vulnerable parts of him that were left exposed.

[Vulnerable parts that she wanted to rake her fingers across.]

"Rather late, might I add," Skarlet chose to reply instead.

"I told you I had an arrangement beforehand," Rain reminded, and he was quick to do so- although he seemed to omit the part where he had failed to tell her that until after they had set up their rendezvous. He reached a hand out for her to take, open-palmed. "You know I don't like to keep you waiting, Skarlet."

Even him just saying her name got under her skin.

There was a different kind of hunger that was beginning to claw at her belly.

Skarlet let his hand linger in the open air until Rain had gotten closer to her- and even then she waited a few seconds longer before she reached out to take it. It was petty, but she figured it wouldn't hurt for him to have to wait around for her for once.

His fingers wrapped around her hand and gently squeezed it in his oddly warm hold.

Only for him to then hoist her off of the metal statue in one quick pull.

She was quick to keep her footing, only to then feel Rain pull her arm over her head as he gently spun her around- seemingly for his own amusement. Skarlet decided to humor him with the gesture though, figuring that the full moon that was beaming down on them would make the motion seem rather romantic. Even if it wasn't exactly something she wanted to do while they were standing on the bridge overhanging the Pit.

Sure, there was a river of blood on one side that would easily break her fall.

But there was also a spiked death trap on the other- although she easily could've gotten around those without injury as well.

It was the principle of the matter though.

And she knew he was just doing this to annoy her.

"Besides, I thought you liked it when I showed up like this," Rain continued, clearly amused now as he held her out at arm's length.

His skirmish with the glowing figure from before had left him with a few scraps and cuts- but luckily no burns of any kind.

There was nothing on him that warranted a lot of bloodshed, if any at all, but there was certainly just enough for her to smell it on him.

Just enough to tease her with it- without actually letting her get a taste.

"I'm liking the new legs."

Skarlet huffed in response, now understanding why he was being the fool that he was- and yet, she still let him play his little game.

"Tell me, are they as sturdy as your last ones were?"

She gave him a subtle smile in response, something she knew he could see even with her own veil on. "They're even better," Skarlet remarked, feeling the way Rain pulled her in at the words now. She moved a hand to his bare chest and felt the warmth of his blood as it pooled underneath her touch.

So close to it, she could feel the energy radiating from his blood in her fingertips; it only made her hunger feel worse.

"Would you like to try them out?" she offered. "I taught them some new tricks- and if you're a good boy, maybe I'll let you teach them some too."

She could see the equal sense of hunger in his eyes with the words.

"Is that so?" Rain replied.

And just the same, she knew that he was grinning even with his veil on.

"Well now, how can I turn down such an offer?"

Reaching up, Skarlet brushed her fingers against his veil, feeling the subtle impression of his lips on the other side. They were so warm even with a restrained touch, and she imagined the blood that was running under his skin, putting off the heat that she was feeling from him now. And every part of her wanted to pull him in, rip him open, and bathe in the warmth that was calling for her.

"You first."

She didn't argue with his command, but she made sure that Rain saw her roll her eyes at him before she slowly pulled down her red veil- pulling it down to reveal equally red lips.

And she saw the heat in his eyes as they settled on her lips, which she curled into a smile just for him.

"And now you," Skarlet spoke.

It was her turn to watch now as Rain reached up and disconnected his veil from his headpiece; he only did it from one side however, which allowed the purple silk to drop and hang against his jaw instead. And she let her eyes settle on his bare face in full- regal and defined, reminisce of the family that he was born from.

Reaching up, Skarlet let her fingers brush against his lips once more before she slowly guided them down to his chin.

Her fingertips traced over the old scars that he kept hidden under his masquerade look.

Such a beautiful man in form and body.

The thick scarring that cut over his jaw and lips hardly drew away from his beauty.

Her fingers moved to grab him firmly by the chin before she pulled him in to her, kissing him lightly- just enough to feel how his scarred lips felt against her smooth ones. Just enough for her to feel the sense of heat that was transferred between them.

And then she pulled away.

With him so close to her, she could see every detail of his face, and she hated to admit just how smitten she still found herself for him. She knew if she gave him even a word of praise, he wouldn't let her down for it; even with her sense of restraint though, it was difficult to not remark on it.

"So sweet," Skarlet mused, as she moved her hand to cup his cheek now.

"Only my blood," Rain replied.

"Well of course."

Edenian blood was the sweetest and the most powerful compared to all others in concentration.

The rarity of it only made it that more addicting, as did the fight that usually came with obtaining it.

Years spent serving Shao Kahn and standing in the presence of the only remaining figures of the Edenian race had been cruel. To know just how powerful their blood was, and yet have it dangled in front of her as a commodity, as a rarity that couldn't be spent or wasted.

But there there was _him_.

Not just an Edenian in full-blood, but an Edenian Demigod.

A beautiful man with incredible power- and with even sweeter, more powerful blood than that of the Princesses.

When Rain had first crossed her path, she had been blinded by how intoxicating he felt to just be around. His energy alone could fill a room; he could flood her senses without even being close to her.

But he had been one of the Emperor's Generals and was rarely on the palace grounds; which meant that there was little chance of her getting to his blood, let alone getting to it willingly. Edenians were incredibly objective and stubborn in surrendering their blood, and Skarlet had more than enough times settled with other victims just to lessen the hassle of it.

But how easily Rain had came to her instead.

Smug and arrogant, but sweet-talking and smooth when he wanted to be; which was often, considering how manipulative he was at his core, and how often he loved to play mind games with people.

"The rest of you is just bitter," Skarlet finished.

Rain seemed to humor her with an amused smile before he pulled her into a proper kiss; the scars on his lips parting with her own. And Skarlet stood up on her toes as she felt his fingers push through her loose hair, eventually curling his hand against the back of her head as he anchored her against him. She felt the weight of his tongue fill her mouth and moaned softly at the presence- feeling the shared heat that came with it.

Moving both of her hands to his chest, she felt the thundering rush of his blood under her touch, pulsating underneath his skin.

Charming and manipulative, but she had been willing to chance it for just a taste.

There was a lot to him that was worth chancing- even despite the attitude that came with it.

"You look parched, sweetheart," his voice was cruelly sweet when he spoke again- and the touch of his hand gently cupping her face only added to it. "I can't have you passing out on me already, especially after I made you wait."

"Fuck off," Skarlet replied, clicking her tongue at him, knowing well he was just playing his game again.

He knew she wanted him.

But she knew he was also here for himself as well.

Rain kissed her once more, allowing her to feel the subtle laugh from behind his lips at her pointed remark.

"I don't mind if you get an early taste," he whispered against her.

It was a tempting offer.

One that she couldn't deny.

Skarlet kissed him once in return before she let her lips move from his own and down to his chin, and then down to his neck.

Her tongue rolled across the open scrape at his throat, where that glowing figure must've gotten a lucky hit- if only to just tear the first layer of skin off for all of its efforts. She pressed her lips against the small injury, where she could taste just a hint of the blood that flowed beneath the remaining skin.

Skarlet heard and felt the quiet hum from his throat at the touch, and felt the brushing motion of his hands against her back as Rain pulled her in.

She curled her fingers against his chest, feeling the blood being pulled to her- feeling the essence of it burning in her fingertips now.

And it was like cold water on a hot day.

Skarlet felt Rain's hands curl against her now; his own fingers stiff as he allowed her to feed on the energy from his blood.

There was a subtle groan from his throat now, brief and short- just enough to let her know that he could feel her.

If there was a less painful way to draw the energy out, she'd have a better handle on getting people to donate more willingly to her. But unfortunately, this was the only method possible. And in the end of things, it was the most fun way of doing it too. It enhanced her abilities to get the most energy out of a short period of time, and it doubled as a persuasive method if needed.

After all, it really convinced people to _talk_ when they didn't want to.

Plus she always got what she wanted in the end, so anything that came before was just extra.

So when Rain initially offered to let her get a taste, offering it on his own free will, Skarlet had warned him that it would be painful and that it was the only way she could do it. She wasn't certain of why she had warned him, she certainly didn't warn any of the others- of course, if they asked her if it would hurt, she was truthful in her response.

Still, the idea of pain didn't deter him in the slightest- and she had been convinced that he didn't take her seriously.

It just made the situation even more suspicious.

But Rain had admitted that, as far-fetched as it sounded, they had similar powers and he had found that interesting. And that it was only through sheer morbid curiosity that he wanted to know what it was like.

Rain claimed that he had been struck and bitten by all sorts of Outworld creatures- Vampires and Tarkatans included.

But he had never encountered a creature like her, and if she fawned after him as greatly as she did then there was no harm in seeing what she could do- especially seeing as she served on the Emperor's council.

Not to mention, she had taken blood from all the other Edenians, so why should he be left out?

Skarlet didn't like to be referred to as a creature, or that she ' _fawned_ ' after him, wherever he had gotten that information from.

But it wasn't like he was completely wrong in either aspects.

And she wasn't one to turn down a free meal.

After all, with Rain being one of the Emperor's prized General, Skarlet figured it would be harder for her to pull strings with Shao Kahn in order for her to get a taste of him- as she had done with the other Edenians before. She would be a fool to not take him up on his offer, with whatever strings might be attached to it.

She soon found out why he had come to her on his own volition.

Rain didn't fight her at all once the ordeal started, which was a relief that she didn't have to waste excess energy on restraining him.

Skarlet had watched the pain kick in as his body turned tense in response to it- but there was a difference in the way he had groaned and squirmed in her hold, in the way he hadn't even struggled against the growing agony. She wouldn't realize it until later that Rain had been working with her, refusing to allow his body to fight her energy as she poured it into him- draining him of his own.

And when she had finished, having gorged herself on what she had assumed was an one-time thing, Rain had fallen to his knees in the aftermath- panting and gasping in a way far different from her usual victims.

The beautiful ones always held the most secrets.

And his seemed to be that he enjoyed the pain being inflicted upon him.

His blood had kept her full for two months.

Skarlet never even felt the touch of hunger until the last day- and even then, she could've dragged it out for three more weeks if needed. The power it had given her was undeniable; she was stronger than she was before, able to last twice as long in battle, and do far worse things than previously imagined.

His blood had given her a stronger gift than just a save from hunger.

From then on, Rain had become a willing participate to her feeding, with each of their sessions getting more and more erratic between them.

She would go to him, tell him when she needed him, and he was always happy to oblige her requests.

Pulling her hands away, Skarlet released Rain from her hold- breaking the connection from his skin and feeling the way his body jerked in response to the sudden stop. She heard him give a hard gasp in the aftermath of it, and heard him take several sharp breaths afterwards, stammering his way through each one.

Sometimes the pain made it difficult for her victims to breathe, or sometimes they just preferred to hold their breath to keep from screaming.

Rain had once described to her that the process made it feel like every artery in his body was getting squeezed shut. It made his heart pound harder in his chest as it tried to get more blood out to keep his body alive, which in turn only rushed the adrenaline that was being pumped out in response. It was like being in a constant state of panic, in a constant state of pain that the body was ignoring but the brain was fully aware of.

To him, it was like a high.

Skarlet moved her fingers to tangle in his purple cape, offering some form of physical support without touching his skin again- although she still desperately wanted to. There was her own sense of power, her own sense of a high in watching him squirm in such a simple hold.

"That's better," Rain mused, despite sounding breathless still.

And there was that purring sound in his voice again, husky now from the pain.

And it clawed inside of her.

"Now you don't look so tired."

Already Skarlet could feel that twisting hunger from before was gone.

What little she had pulled from him in just a few seconds alone would already last her for days.

But she didn't come all the way out here for just a week's worth of energy and power.

Pushing herself against him now, Skarlet felt the firmness between his legs, felt the way he was already aroused from the brief session between them. And it reminded her of the second time she had asked for him; it reminded her of how Rain had kissed her mid-feeding, forming a better seal of contact between them, making his blood easier for her to draw.

It reminded her of how she had felt his body heaving in time with her own, of how she had felt the way he rubbed himself against her- and how she had wasted no time in helping him out.

She didn't think she had ever seen someone climax as hard as he had in that moment, which only went on to seal her theory on his masochistic needs; which he had found an easy outlet for in her favor.

Skarlet let her fingers trail down the bare skin of his chest before she rested them on the metal belt around his waist, which she then used to tug him into her.

She held his hips still as she rocked her own against him, making sure that each motion rubbed against his cock.

And the soft groan that escaped him at the gesture was more than enough to solidify her next action.

"Perhaps I should return the favor," Skarlet mused, as she moved a hand between them and traced her fingers against him through his pants, "- for your generous donation."

"Is that so?" Rain replied, moving his hands to brush against her waist- allowing them to follow the subtle rocking motions coming from her hips. "Then maybe we should slip into something a little more comfortable."

She knew where he was going with the remark, and wanted it just the same.

But she chose to shut it down- for now at least.

"Not yet," she started, her hands moving around to the back of his belt now, somewhat embracing him with the gesture. For what it was worth, she enjoyed the closeness between them even if it wasn't her intention; and he seemed to feel the same as he pulled her in just as well. "Let me focus on you for now."

Carefully reversing the sliding lock on the back, Skarlet loosened the belt from his waist and pulled it off. She took up on his assistance in removing the belt completely, before she watched as Rain chose to hang it up on one of the statues nearby- whereas she would've chuck it wherever to get it out of the way. The man didn't like for his things to get dirty though, even if his usage of water came out to his advantage in regards to that.

Kissing him once more, light on his pale lips and jaw, Skarlet slowly sank down to her knees in front of him; her hands trailing down along his thighs with the motion.

She moved a hand to cup him through his pants, feeling the bulge of his cock now pressing back against her palm. And she took her sweet time with watching him as she stroked him through the confining fabric, squeezing him where the space allowed for it- and watching as his lips parted with an easy groan.

Stroking him with one hand, she kept his focus concentrated on that motion while her other hand reached up to tug open the front of his pants. Skarlet found herself hungry for him; a side-effect to indulging herself on his blood after such a long absence, and then getting to watch him wither in her hold. There was no denying either that he could get under her skin in more ways than one; and each one always ended in the same way.

His cock practically sprang out at the first give of confinement- only to fall right back into her grasp.

Wrapping her fingers around him, Skarlet began the slow method of stroking him in full- and admiring the shape of him in her hand while she did so.

His cock curved and bulged in her grasp, easily filling her palm and hanging stiff over her fingers from its own weight. She could feel it twitching with each tease as she stroked his full length with each steady slide of her hand. It was hard to deny that Rain had a _lot_ to brag about- and not just about his bastard bloodline or his signature elemental power.

"So eager, _Prince_ ," Skarlet teased, as she let his cock balance on her fingertips, holding it out like it was a specimen to observe.

Perhaps there was something to give with how he portrayed himself.

"You're one to talk," Rain remarked.

"Can you blame me?" she offered.

Skarlet never broke eye contact with him as she wrapped her fingers around his cock once more and slowly leaned in- gingerly pressing her lips against the base of his shaft. She kissed lightly at first, warming him up, before she gradually worked her tongue against him- alternating between the base of his cock and the subtle curve of his lower stomach.

Stroking him slowly, she pressed the flat of her thumb against his tip and circled it, rubbing against it until she felt the warm precum that bubbled out from beneath her hold.

Angling his cock to the side, Skarlet moved her lips to his shaft and slowly worked herself along his shape; she moved her fingers in strokes around her lips as she did so, keeping his attention on every little motion. She felt Rain twitch in her hold; his cock twitching against her tongue as she ran it along his underside, as she worked her way to the tip.

And when she tasted the first hint of saltiness on her tongue, she wrapped her fingers around him and held him steady- finishing him off as she wrapped her lips around the head.

She started off by suckling on him, letting her tongue lap at the precum that was still dribbling out, before she took him in further. And she felt his cock twitch against her tongue once more as she eased him into her mouth, moaning softly as she did so.

It was hard to ignore the way Rain was hooked on watching her every move.

Skarlet let herself work up to him, making a few brief drags between her lips before she got a handle on what she wanted to do with him. Keeping her fingers wrapped around his cock, she continued to stroke him where her lips hadn't quite reached yet- and slowly worked out a rhythm between her fingers and her mouth. She took him in slowly, getting readjusted to his shape, to how the first bulge of his cock felt pressed against her lips.

It had been almost a year now since they had last crossed paths.

And while she found herself hungry for him the moment she heard his voice, she knew she had to pace herself around him.

Rain's fingers moved to stroke her hair, carefully pulling it away from her face before he held it back in one hand.

There was a quiet groan from his lips as he tightened his grip on her hair and pushed her in against him, almost guiding her now as he began to thrust lightly into her mouth- drawing an equal moan from her throat with the motions. He worked his cock between her lips, sliding himself back and forth against her tongue in easy sessions, adding in a little more with each thrust.

And Skarlet gladly took whatever he gave her, feeling the brief twitch in her throat as his cock pushed against the back of her mouth. She relaxed her jaw, easing the muscles and keeping them lax, as she pushed in and guided him into her throat- if only for a moment before she pulled back.

"Such a pretty mouth," Rain whispered.

She continued to work her lips and mouth against him, feeling the way it stirred more and more heat in her own belly as she did.

Another moan escaped her as Skarlet felt his other hand move to massage the back of her scalp now.

Moving her hands between his legs, she used her elbows to push his thighs further apart before she reached up and grabbed at his backside- pulling him forward with the gesture. Taking more of him in, she slowly eased him down her throat once more, taking him in full this time. And she kept him there, savoring the way his whole body seemed to shiver in response; savoring the way his hand tugged at her hair.

" _Fuck-_ "

Skarlet felt Rain shift his weight to better balance himself as she used her hands to rock his hips against her mouth- taking away his sense of control with the gesture. She could feel the fingers tangled in her hair release just before he wrapped the red strands around his knuckles instead; it gave him little leverage, but she decided to let him create his own illusion on the matter.

Rain was the first to break eye contact as he tilted his head back; his lips parted by his staggered breathing now.

There was just something in watching a man as refined as him absolutely lose himself in the hands of someone like her.

She felt his cock twitch in her throat just before she heard him groan- a slight wheeze escaping his throat when he exhaled. His fingers curled tight against the back of her head as he came to a finish.

And she held on to him for a few seconds longer before she pulled back, freeing him from her throat before she used a hand to continue stroking him- feeling the wet mess on his cock aid in making each motion slicker. She took the time to get a few breaths herself, feeling the slight soreness that remained in the absence of his cock, but also feeling a tighter ache in her lungs.

A hand moved to grab at her chin before Rain pulled her head up- and before he met her halfway as he leaned down to kiss her.

Skarlet hummed lightly at the gesture, moving her hands to his thighs now as she leaned up into him. Her red lips parted for him and she felt the heat of his tongue fill the space in her mouth. Rain kissed her firmly while she preferred to keep it lax to ease the aching in her jaw- which only lead to a messy, mismatched embrace between them.

"Well now, what are we waiting for?" Skarlet whispered, tugging at his pants with the words.

"You want to do it here?" Rain questioned, as he released the hair he had wrapped around his knuckles. "On a bridge?"

"Does anywhere else on this island seem like a better choice?" she pressed.

"Anywhere that doesn't have a pit of spikes underneath it would be a better choice."

Skarlet gave an amused chuckle at his expense as she leaned back onto her knees now, fingers still tugging at his pants. "Since when were you afraid of a few little spikes? It's not like you would get hurt."

"That doesn't mean I want to roll off and find out," he replied.

For a man who could turn his body into water at the moment of impact, he sure was afraid of a little bit of height and velocity- and about a dozen other things that he could easily avoid by using the same water morphing method.

Part of her was annoyed by it, especially considering that he was literally the one who asked her to come out here, as though he didn't have just one thing on his mind when he did so.

But part of her was also amused by his heels-in-the-ground attitude.

He was acting like he didn't know that she'd easily take him wherever and whenever she wanted to.

Snapping her fingers, Skarlet drew out the energy she had bled from him and used it to summon blood from the river below, to which she manipulated into forming tentacles just behind him. The blood was poor quality compared to his and wasn't really good enough for her to consume- but it was good enough for her to waste.

"We could go about this the easy way," Skarlet offered, watching as the tentacles moved on her command now. And she wrapped them around his wrists before Rain had a chance to realize what was going on. "Or the hard way."

She felt him provide some resistance to the hold, but inevitably he lost the fight- _purposely_.

"Playing this game already?" Rain questioned, although his look of amusement was easy to see. "Over one argument?"

"Why wouldn't I?" she replied, as she summoned another set of tentacles now; these ones she wrapped around his knees. She gave a subtle tug to coax him, but when Rain resisted again, she tightened the tentacles until they squeezed his legs out from underneath him, forcing him to drop down to his knees in front of her.

Skarlet smiled at the amused yet exasperated expression Rain gave her before she leaned in and kissed him once more- feeling the easy way he gave in to her. She moved her hands to cup his face and held him to her as she took free reign with her tongue in his mouth. Rain was gracious enough to allow her to do so, coaxing her with every little motion- and suckling on her tongue when she began to pull away from him.

"What do you say I take the reigns from here and you stay where I want you to- and then I do what I want to you?" Skarlet whispered, kissing him still between every other word.

"When have I ever turned you down, Skarlet?"

"I think my blood whip could answer that for you."

They were awful and manipulative towards one another, only out to take what they wanted from each other.

It was often made with the idea of a fair trade in mind, but not always.

Standing back to her feet, Skarlet could feel Rain's eyes watching her every movement again- and once more, decided to entertain him. She started with the leather belts around her waist, undoing each one and tossing it behind her; if she lost one over the edge of the bridge than so be it. By removing only the belts, she felt the rest of her uniform slowly coming undone, with each piece having relied on the leather to keep their places.

The leather overskirt and loincloth were the next to go.

Skarlet released the corset clips keeping them around her midsection and let them crumble to the ground; the missing weight from the heavy clothing was a relief to take in.

She plucked off the red material that created a crosshatch over her chest and shoulders, balling it up in one hand before she dropped it as well.

"Have I mentioned that I miss your getup from before?" Rain remarked.

The thin two-piece that had hardly counted as an uniform had been a distant memory until now.

But considering how easily accessible the uniform had made her be for him, she wasn't surprised that he missed it.

"Only every time we cross paths," Skarlet replied, as she leaned down to undo the straps on her boots before she pulled them off.

She supposed in some ways she did miss it as well- but only in terms of convenience. The amount of things they had gotten away with no matter where they were certainly gave the two-piece some warm memories.

"Maybe if you're good, I'll consider wearing it again- just for _you_."

"You know how to sweeten a deal, Skarlet."

Taking her time now, she undid her pants and slowly tugged them down her thighs before she let them pool at her feet.

It felt like his eyes were burning into her now as she utilized an extra tendril to relocate her discarded clothing- ensuring that they didn't get in her way now.

Grabbing him by the chin now, Skarlet leaned down to kiss him, feeling how easily Rain leaned in to greet her; his lips already parted for her, a gesture she quickly took advantage of. Her other hand moved to loosen the sliding caps at the back of his headpiece, freeing it just enough for her to slowly take it apart and remove his crown.

Skarlet stepped back, hanging his crown on one of the metal statues nearby, before she took a moment to admire her handiwork.

Cuffed at the wrists, Rain was settled on his knees in front of her. His arms were pulled pretty taunt behind him but not too tight; she liked the idea of capture but she didn't want to hurt or strain him too much- he would only enjoy it after all.

The tentacles around his knees were pretty useless at this point, but she had them tug his thighs apart before she dissipated them.

Even though he had been de-crowned and put into a place of submission, Rain still managed to look regal in the position; it was almost as though he should always be in a position like this.

"Admiring your work?" Rain queried, easily having picked up on her admiration for his placement.

"Admiring the view?" Skarlet countered.

"It's a good angle."

Moving back towards him, she reached a hand out to grab him by the ponytail now before she pulled his head forward and pressed him against her abdomen. She felt his warm lips against her skin almost immediately; she felt the eager way he parted his lips and let his tongue rub against her.

Rain trailed down along the curve of her stomach, placing subtle kisses as he did, pushing down between the red curls of her mound before he brought his mouth between her legs.

And Skarlet stood up on her toes at the contact, sucking in a hard breath at the heat of his mouth, at his tongue already pushing between her labia. The working touch of his lips, of his mouth brought attention to just how wet she already was; she could feel herself already dripping around his lips- half spilling into his mouth and half spilling down his chin.

That only seemed to motivate him as Rain worked himself against her, licking her over and closing his lips against her clit.

A quiet moan escaped her throat as she felt the transfer of heat from his mouth.

Skarlet pulled on his hair and tilted his head back before she pushed her hips forward- gently rocking them back and forth against his lips now. She felt his jaw go slack and felt his lips part further, allowing her to drag herself over his mouth and tongue. Rain pushed his tongue between her folds, drinking her in while his lips closed against whatever piece of her he could reach.

He swirled his tongue around her labia, catching them between his lips and gently tugging them as she moved against him.

The heat had her legs trembling before Skarlet propped a knee against one of his shoulders, using him to brace herself while also pushing herself down against him- wanting to seal every bit of space between them.

She felt the way Rain pulled at his restraints and felt his frustrations.

She knew he wanted to touch her, he wanted to put every bit of himself to use.

Rain wanted to use his fingers alongside his tongue; he wanted to have better control, wanted to have her cumming to him on his command- but she wouldn't let him.

It was every bit of what she wanted too, but she had let him have his fun first and now it was her turn.

Summoning another tentacle, Skarlet carefully wrapped it around his ponytail after releasing it herself and had the tendril pull him back- breaking the contact between them. And even though it was anticipated, she still sucked in a hard breath at the absence of his mouth between her legs. She removed her knee from his shoulder before she had the tentacle yank him backwards and onto the ground, laying him out on his back.

And there was a subtle exhale from his lips, which meant she might've had him yanked down a little too hard.

"Maybe I shouldn't have let you get a taste beforehand," Rain remarked, attempting to shift his body around in the new position.

"Perhaps that was your downfall," Skarlet replied as she carefully stepped over him.

Kneeling down on top of him, she moved to straddle his head between her thighs and felt the way he quickly picked up where he had left off. And there was a warm shiver that crept up her spine at the movement of his tongue and his lips playing with her clit again. Skarlet let her fingers rake through his hair now, tilting his head back once more as she slowly rocked herself against his mouth again.

Once his focus seemed to be on her again, Skarlet let the hold her tentacles had on him loosen a bit, just enough for Rain to adjust how he was positioned underneath her. She didn't give him too much freedom, although it didn't seem like he would fight for it, but she gave enough to let him correct the blood flow in his legs and arms.

She let her tentacles wrap around him once he seemed settled in, this time allowing them to spread over him.

Allowing them to wrap themselves around the length of his long legs, spreading his thighs apart once more.

Skarlet leaned back now, letting her hands rest against his abdomen and feeling the way it jerked underneath her with each breath taken from between her legs.

She focused on him, on the motions of his mouth, of his tongue now plunging into her, drinking her from the source and fueling the heat that stirred in her belly. She could feel the trembling in her legs as Rain started to focus on all the right places now- seemingly done with teasing her.

"That's right- _right_ there," Skarlet whispered, shifting her hips forward as one hand moved to tangle in his hair again. "That's good-"

She continued to rock herself against him, slowly rolling her hips and letting him do his work- allowing herself to be lulled by his motions. When she leaned forward, shifting the angle of his mouth, she felt the way Rain closed his lips around her clit once more; and she found herself having to fight back the urge of potentially crushing his head between her thighs when he did so.

He used his entire mouth against her, suckling and rolling his tongue across her clit.

There was no doubt that he could feel the staggered rocking from her hips now- and knowing that he had her where he wanted her.

Skarlet caught the hard gasp that broke across her lips as Rain brought her to finish and felt both of her hands grab at his head as she anchored herself to his mouth, riding herself out on top of him.

There was that rush of heat, of blood that speared through her, bringing attention to every bead of sweat on her tight skin.

Bringing attention to the pull of every muscle in her abdomen as she dug her knees into the soft dirt underneath them.

There were a few staggered breaths in the aftermath.

A few rapid blinks just to get rid of the double images in the corners of her vision.

"Good boy," Skarlet huffed, struggling to find her voice still, and now feeling the itch of her skin underneath what remained of her leather clothing.

She felt Rain pull his hands from her restraints, bending her power to his own now as he brought his palms to her hips and pushed her up- lifting the pressure off of his jaw and allowing him to breathe again.

Perhaps the downside to their arrangement was that his power overlapped her own to a degree.

She needed blood as fuel, but there was no blood without water- something he regularly reminded her of.

But it meant that while Rain could've stopped her at any point, willing to overthrow the situation as it was, he chose not to. He had reversed their acts of power in the past before, usually in the heat of the moment, but in this case she might've had their greatly-picked environment to thank for his hesitation.

Then again, he liked to be made powerless from time to time- whether he'd ever admit to it or not.

Skarlet felt Rain place a hand against her abdomen and push back against her, giving her more than an ample enough hint to move- which she did. Unfolding her legs out from underneath her, she moved herself back onto his chest, relieving more of the weight on his shoulders.

Rain pushed himself up without warning once she was far enough back, causing her to slide backwards- thankfully to where he had brought his legs up in time to catch her against them. His arms moved to catch underneath her own legs, once sprawled in front of her, as he sat up completely now; Rain kept them in the crooks of his arms as he now had her partly sandwiched against him.

Her back was against his thighs while her hips were seated against his waist- where she immediately felt the press of his cock against her lower back.

Moving a hand to his shoulder, Skarlet pulled herself in against him and brought her lips to his own, feeling the warm mess she had left behind.

And there was power behind the embrace as she felt Rain's tongue sink into her mouth the second the opportunity struck.

They were both still breathless in the aftermath, but that hardly slowed him down; Skarlet felt the way he sucked in air between every other stroke of his tongue, barely breaking their lips apart as he did so.

He tasted warm and sweet.

Skarlet brought her hands to cup his face now as she felt Rain pull from her, only to have her lean in to suckle on his lower lip and gently bite it in her hold.

Rain moved his arms out from underneath her legs, allowing them to drop into a straddle at his waist, before his fingers quickly began to work through her remaining shirt. He dismantled what was left of it and stripped it over her head, only to then ball it up and place it on the bridge space next to them; he seemed to be keeping a conscious sense of awareness for it, lest it get tossed over the edge.

And she followed suit.

She worked to get rid of his cape and stripped off his bracers, as well as any remaining armor between them- to which she pushed all of it off behind him. For an added measure, she had both piles of discarded clothing swept aside by a lingering tendril, for safe keeping.

Skarlet felt his hands grapple with her.

She felt them against her breasts now as Rain wrapped his fingers around them, squeezing them in his hold. It was a welcoming embrace as she felt how quick his fingers were to toy with her nipples; they were sore from rubbing against the leather of her uniform during her travels, during their activities from before- which had only made them ache more.

But Rain's hands were cool as he rolled the stiff peak of her nipples underneath his thumbs, as he pinched them with his index fingers and tugged.

"That's good," Skarlet breathed, as she moved her hands to cover his own, adding more weight behind his motions. And she felt the way he continued to pinch and release, offering varying degrees of pressure between each hold. "Just like that."

He pinched her nipples once again, and this time slowly pulled them forward, pulling her in along with them.

"Just like that?" Rain mimicked, brushing his lips against the curve of her jaw before he dropped to kiss at her neck.

He slowly trailed downward, kissing and sucking at her skin before he bit softly into the space where her neck curved into her shoulder. Skarlet breathed out at the gesture, feeling the itch of how his teeth barely pinched her skin- and feeling how it brought the heat back to her belly.

Rain kissed at the biting impression left behind, teasing her with it before he moved on to do the same to her collarbones.

And there was something about almost being able to feel his teeth against the bare bone that had her pressing herself against him- tempting him to break the skin this time.

Instead, Skarlet felt his hands release her breasts before Rain moved his arms around her, tugging her in at first before he grabbed her thighs from behind. And it was a squeezing hold as he buried his fingers into her warm skin before he used the tight grip to pull her up against him. He shifted her up against his chest, allowing him to kiss at the valley between her breasts before he brought one to his lips.

A quiet moan escaped her at the sudden warmth of his mouth around her nipple, at the motion of his tongue as he rubbed against it- just before he closed his lips and suckled on her.

A hand slid up along her back now, guiding her in and anchoring her to him.

Skarlet draped her arms over his shoulders before she tucked her head into his black hair- breathing him in and taking note that he still smelled like a cool ocean breeze despite the circumstances.

Moving her legs, she managed to get them back underneath her before she tucked her knees in against his hips as she moved to give herself support; although she continued to lean most of her weight against Rain's chest, satisfied with letting him take lead for now.

Once settled, Skarlet gently rocked her hips down against him, moving herself up and down against his cock and feeling how it rubbed against her lower back with each motion.

She would still need a few minutes to decompress and come down off of the climax that was still wet between her legs, but she knew that Rain was ready to keep going. She liked to muse that his Demigod blood gave him a sense of stamina and endurance that was unmatched by mortal men; which had created issues for her when she looked into having other lovers.

None of them could quite match up to what Rain could give her.

And each one ended up feeling like a waste afterwards.

Running her fingers through his hair, Skarlet felt the way he continued to suckle at her breast; she felt a hand move to grab at her unattended one, squeezing it in his hold once more. Rain rolled her nipple underneath his fingers once more, switching between rubbing and pinching it- keeping her from feeling like one was being left out on the action.

She moaned softly with the warm workings of his mouth, feeling the different sensations that came with it.

She felt him release before he switched to her other breast and felt his fingers follow suit.

Rain kept her engaged, kept her entertained as he kissed at the valley between her breasts between each switch- occasionally working himself up to her collarbones once more just to tease her. And sometimes he really pressed his luck by biting her; not enough to really account for anything, but enough for her to feel the rush of heat with each one. He bit at her shoulders, her collarbones, at her breasts once or twice, but he made up by peppering her with his lips, with his mouth- ensuring she felt each contact he made.

His hand rolled up and down the length of her back as he used the weight she had leaned against him to keep her to him.

Skarlet felt herself get pulled from focus as Rain pulled away from her; his hands now moving to cup her face as he eased her back into his lap. She couldn't resist moving her hands to touch at her breasts, surveying his work. Her skin was peppered with red rings, with red marks from where he had latched on to her, where he had suckled and bitten at her skin. And there was no denying the new-found sensitivity now; her breasts were sore and her nipples swollen in his wake- the sensation of his fingers pinching them until they turned a darker shade of red still lingered behind.

He seemed to enjoy watching her touch herself, watching her move her hands over her bare breasts, feeling the lingering heat from his mouth still on her skin.

"Why don't we start what we both came out here for?" Rain whispered, holding her head still as he seemed to keep her at arm's length- but not by much.

He liked eye contact; he liked that sense of directness, that sense of being followed.

"You start," Skarlet spoke, "I'll catch up."

Rain moved his hands back underneath her thighs before he pulled her up and held her against his chest again. She lifted with her knees again to make it a little easier on him just before she felt one of his hands disappear- only to then feel him drag his cock from her lower back, down against her backside before he pushed it between her legs.

Skarlet shivered at the brush of his cock against her thigh before she moved a hand down between them and grabbed at it herself. Stroking him over, getting reacquainted with him, she slowly brought the tip of his cock between her folds and aligned him with her.

Her fingers kept him steady as Rain pushed down on her hips, easily guiding her down on to him.

The initial breach sent a warm tremor through her body as she felt the head of his cock push inside of her, as she felt the gradual way he continued to pull her down onto it; her body was still relaxed from her own climax before, which allowed him to do so without any resistance. Her knees dug into his hips as he gradually brought her further and further down, slowly filling her up from the inside.

"Look at you," Rain mused, keeping a tight hold on her thighs as he slowly moved her up and down along his cock; he kept a steady pace and seemed to tease the both of them as he only let her take a portion of him at a time. He eased her into each thrust, careful with how he brought her down onto him- although she knew it was more out of play than out of concern. "That's how you like it, isn't it, Skarlet?"

She kept her moans partly stifled as she felt the easy way he worked her body.

There was no doubt he was taking clear enjoyment in having her rock up and down against his chest, and up and down on his cock.

Moving her hand from between them, Skarlet draped her arms over his shoulders once more before she used her legs and moved herself along with his motions. She could feel his cock moving inside of her more and more each time he pulled her down; she could feel the slight strain of taking him in but she continued to push down onto him, feeling that desperate bid to have him.

"Move with me."

She felt the way Rain leaned back away from her and she shifted her weight forward to follow him. She felt the slow way he carefully laid out onto his back again before she let herself fall against his chest. Her knees splayed out around him, spreading her thighs across his waist, as she kept her hips low against his own- ensuring he didn't slip out of her with the movement.

His hands moved from the back of her thighs to her lower back now, where he crossed them across the back of her hips; she felt how he grabbed at his own forearms to form a more solid hold against her.

It took a moment for them to settle.

And once past that, he picked up where he had left off.

It was slow at first; Rain used his heels for leverage as he lifted his hips with each thrust and used his arms to keep her hips pulled down to him, making it easier to greet her with each one.

Moving her arms to tuck next to his head now, Skarlet pushed up onto her forearms for some added support before she tucked her brow against his jaw. She found herself already panting with each slow, deep-seated thrust, feeling the subtle delay between each one as he let her savor the warmth of his cock inside of her. It felt like her body clung to him now, welcoming his cock each time he thrusted inside of her and then desperate for him every time he pulled out.

He had felt thick between her lips and in her throat before, but now Skarlet could feel the girth of it plunging into her; she could feel her body stretching around him with each thrust, eager to make room for him.

With her hips dropped the way they were, with his arms crossed holding over her lower back, the position gave him full control, full access.

It didn't allow him to sink his cock in full inside of her, but as a warm up it was probably for the best.

She could get overzealous with him, throw caution to the wind just to live for pleasure in the moment- only to then feel the lingering ache of him between her legs for the days to follow.

But for now, she settled on feeling him moving back and forth inside of her; she felt herself slowly being lulled by the motions, feeling the subtle bounce between their hips with each connection. She could feel the way he started to pick up the pace, now convinced that she had been warmed up enough to handle it; her throat went tight with a gasp as he started to properly work himself against her.

Holding her down at the hips, he began to pump inside of her; his entire body felt like it was rocking underneath her with each one. And it was hard to deny how she could feel herself getting wet again with each thrust, which in turn only allowed him to go faster, to go deeper.

Skarlet felt his arms unfold before his hands moved to cup her face.

Before Rain pushed her up and away from his chest- just enough for him to look her in the eyes.

His fingers brushed the red strands from her face once again, holding it back as he seemed to study her now.

And it was difficult to main eye contact with him when he was pounding into her from underneath; when he knew exactly how and where to thrust to get her trembling in his hold- when he knew how to make each one more successful than the last.

"Look at that face," Rain spoke, clearly amused by whatever expression she was pulling- but with the way he was using her, it was difficult not to feel her lips fall open with each thrust. "Enjoying yourself, are we?"

"It'd be your problem if I wasn't," Skarlet remarked, barely keeping her voice steady as she found her hips moving in the absence of his hands. "Not that that's ever been an issue so far, Prince."

Rain humored her with a quiet laugh as he moved his fingers through her hair. "I know you, Skarlet," he assured. "I know what you like, what you want- I know you better than anyone else does." He pulled her hair back into one hand again before he moved his other hand to cup her chin. "I'm the only one who can make you feel this way."

It was difficult to form a response as Rain continued to work himself into her, thrusting and plunging his cock between her legs until her thighs were trembling against his waist.

It was difficult to not focus on the sensations running through her body as they worked to clog her senses and slow down her thoughts.

Skarlet just let herself focus on him, focus on what he was doing- and moaning between each thrust Rain brought inside of her.

One hand moved to his own, breaking the grip he had on her chin before she brought it to her lips- where she then bit into the thick portion of his thumb. She felt his hand twitch in grasp but he offered no attempt in retrieving it from her; if anything he seemed to enjoy the art of teeth just as much as she did.

Her mind continued to be flooded, eventually reaching a point where she didn't feel his skin break underneath her teeth until there was the taste of blood in her mouth.

And maybe it was the pain that finally pushed him over.

Skarlet felt Rain bury himself in her; she felt the hand once holding her hair back drop to push down on her hips instead- and he held them down as he finished inside of her.

Her body trembled at the sensations as she felt him milk a few more thrusts, as she felt the warmth of him pool in her belly; a dangerous game they just kept playing back and forth with one another, as though tempting each other with the dare.

Giving one last thrust, Rain dropped his hips and used one hand to pull hers up- slowly pulling his cock free from her.

Skarlet could hear him panting now; she felt the way he seemed to fall limp underneath her, if only for a moment to catch his breath. She felt Rain tug his hand in her grasp and she slowly relented in letting him pull it away; and it was only then did she notice the thin trails of blood spilling from where her teeth had managed to puncture through his skin.

It would explain the sweet taste on her tongue now.

"You needed another hit that desperately?" Rain teased as he flexed his hand, looking as though he was testing the extent of her bite.

But she watched as he conjured water from his skin and cleaned the small wound, carefully letting it flush the injury out; a small task for a power with infinite uses.

"I just wanted to get you to be quiet for a few seconds," Skarlet answered as she pushed herself up. She felt the subtle weakness in her legs as she did so- as well as the wet mess that was starting to drip out of her.

Leaning down, she brought her lips to his own and kissed him.

She felt Rain hum quietly underneath her before his hands moved to roam over her aching body. His palms were still covered in a thin layer of water, which he used to carefully wash the layer of sweat from her skin as he moved them all over her.

And when Skarlet pulled away from him, when she continued to lift herself from his hold, she felt the way his hands trailed with her. She felt the way they gently clung to her arms and then to her wrists before he caught one of them in his hold. She watched as Rain moved her hand to his lips and felt the warmth of them as he kissed at her palm first before he worked up to her fingertips.

"Just use that dagger of yours next time," Rain offered, "- it's easier than teeth."

Skarlet grabbed him by the face; her palm covered his mouth while her fingers squeezed at his cheeks before she gently shook his head under her own control. "And deny you the pleasure?" she retorted.

Rain pushed her hand aside but laughed despite the motion.

"I get more pleasure from the knife than the mouth."

She rolled her eyes before she moved to dismount him completely. Pulling herself off to his right side, she paused as she watched him move an arm out to shield her with the motion, as though afraid she might go over the edge of the bridge somehow. As if she was blind to not see it, but the concern was there.

Settling on her knees, Skarlet reached forward onto her palms before she pulled herself into a mild stretch; she worked out the muscles of her back from the stunted position- as well as gave Rain a show while she was at it. And she could feel his eyes roaming over her again; she felt the way they ran along the curve of her back before they seemed to settle on her hanging breasts.

"We're just getting started, aren't we?" Skarlet mused as she leaned down onto her forearms once more. She kept her weight settled between her arms and her knees, allowing her to rest her legs a little further apart now.

A tight knot was building in her loins again, spurred on by Rain and his thrusting just now, but not quite able to reach such a satisfied ending as he had. There was always a bit of a delay between finishes for her- but that had never stopped him before.

"Or are you already tired, Prince?"

Rain shot her a grin at the remark before he slowly sat up to greet her.

And she felt the hand that reached out to brush her hair from her face once again.

"Come now, Skarlet, I'm not one of your little mortal boyfriends, am I?" Rain started, as he leaned in and brushed his lips against her shoulder.

She watched as he continued to push himself up, brushing a kiss to her cheek now as he turned his body towards her. She felt the brush of a hand against her back and gave in easily to the subtle pressure that slid down between her shoulder-blades, sinking herself lower onto her forearms- and wiggling her hips as she did, bringing attention to the tight throbbing between her legs.

And the feeling only intensified as she felt Rain move to position himself behind her.

He pushed his knees between hers, forcing her to keep her legs separated around his thighs.

Skarlet arched her back and pushed her hips back against him, feeling the way his cock rubbed itself against her backside now; and he was still hard despite the cum that was starting to drip out of her. She felt the slow rolling motions of his palms as Rain trailed his hands up and down the curve of her back, gently kneading at the lingering stiffness in her muscles.

"You're not," Skarlet assured, as she felt the way he rocked his hips against her now, slowly sliding his cock against the cleft of her cheeks. And a shiver ran under her skin at the touch as she could feel the shape of him against her. "You're so much better than they were, you know," she continued to tease, building up his ego for her own amusement- and knowing well that he would deliver on it.

Rain was a jealous man.

Yet another train that only seemed fitting for him.

Between their on and off years, Skarlet had hooked up with a few others, mostly just for the sex considering most of them weren't exactly thrilled about the whole blood feeding thing; she wasn't looking to make a commitment out of them anyways, especially knowing that their blood wouldn't satisfy her. Her list of men wasn't too compelling, but the few who were on it were fun while she kept them around.

But once Rain had found out about them, it was like scorched grounds.

He hated the thought of all of them- especially the Gunslinger.

And even so much as a rumor about her having a crush on a certain Shaolin had been enough to push him over the edge.

Rain had been combative and dismissive all in one; he was both angry that she had even considered someone else and determined to prove that she didn't need anyone else but him.

Skarlet was well aware of how dangerous his attitude was, of how outrageous he was acting over something he had only heard about- let alone witnessed.

And yet, she had found herself mesmerized by his sense of claim, unable to deny that she had found herself turned on the more and more he talked about his disdain over her other lovers.

It was like she finally had something she could hold over his head; her own claim to power over a Demigod.

[Something other than providing an easy outlet for his masochistic needs.]

But then Skarlet had witnessed him with the lost Edenian, with Tanya.

She had seen him flirting his way with the Outworld Kahnum, Mileena.

And she had felt her taken blood boil at the sight, at the thought.

They had erupted on one another soon after.

They spoke in spits and hisses; they made claims against the other with no evidence or reason- only to then end up fucking one another raw until the next morning.

It had been an eye-opening experience.

The adrenaline rush, the feeling of jealousy, of anger; the sheer heat that had kept them going until dawn, until they had collapsed into an exhausted heap, unable to fully comprehend what the argument had been about to begin with.

They both deserved better, but they liked the jealousy between them too much.

Skarlet felt the way Rain pushed down against her shoulder-blades once more before he guided his cock down between her cheeks- and then lower still until he had pushed himself between her folds. And she felt him rub the tip against her, felt how he coated himself in a mix of their own fluids, how he teased her with a few shallow thrusts before he entered her in one motion.

And she shivered at the sudden way he filled her in one go, feeling the way his hand pressed down onto her back until he had fully sheathed himself inside of her.

It had been a quick, calculated motion; one that left her head spinning as the full length of his cock buried inside of her was enough to cause her legs to shake, to cause them to tremble at the weight that filled her.

He was practically throbbing inside of her, filling in the empty space before Rain started to move.

It took a few seconds for the heat to settle, for her head to clear before she felt the short and steady thrusts he lead into her; each one taken to let her focus on just how deep he was seated inside of her.

But once the adrenaline and the head clouds had passed, Skarlet started to rock herself back against him; she rode each of his thrusts in counter to get the most from each one.

And it didn't take long before the thrusting changed from short and steady to long and drawn-out, allowing her to feel the full length of his cock as he moved it in and out of her in easy motions.

Her fingers curled into the dirt of the bridge as she once more heard herself moaning between each thrust.

She felt her throat tremble with a whine as Rain hit that sweet spot inside of her again. It was such a flawless, effortless execution from him- almost like it came too naturally to him by this point; and she hated to admit just how easily he could please her. He truly had spoiled all other lovers for her- and she knew that Rain knew that, which only fed into his ego even more.

Which in turn, only made him more and more addicted to her.

Allowing them both to continue on this downward spiral.

Skarlet felt his hands move to her lower back now as Rain shifted his weight and angled her hips downward, giving himself a better angle to work from. And she gasped at the next thrust that followed, watching as a spur of white dots collected in the corners of her vision in response. Rain rolled himself against that sweet spot once more, ensuring that she felt every movement that drug across it- bringing a knotted sense of tightness to her belly.

And he continued to thrust down into her, keeping his hips more elevated to do so- bringing his cock down into the same place again and again.

And she knew that he knew that she was close, that the trembling in her legs was from anticipation.

Shifting her weight to one arm, Skarlet moved a hand between her legs and rubbed her fingers against her clit; she moved circles in time with his thrusts, feeling the combined ache from her fingers and his cock.

She could feel her hips bouncing in time with his own; she felt the almost harsh contact of skin between each bounce, and felt the way it only added to the growing pressure between her legs.

She felt him start to focus his thrusts, keeping them steady and short now- focusing each one exactly where she wanted him too.

And as much as she wanted to enjoy the position, as much as she wanted to enjoy the way he took her with such ease and confidence, she couldn't deny herself the same pleasures.

Skarlet let out a partial gasp as she came a second time. She felt the rush of heat flood under her skin once more; it was far more intense this time as she dug her fingers and knees into the ground, desperate for something to cling to. She felt the way Rain kept thrusting, adding to the already frenzied sensations and riding her out- milking the tight clench of her body around his cock with each thrust.

And Rain kept going even afterwards, thrusting smoother and slicker now with the added wetness between her legs; longer, deeper thrusts rocked through her now aching body, rocking her back and forth on her knees.

Without hesitating, Skarlet moved the hand between her legs and reached further back to wrap her fingers around his cock. She stroked him between each thrust, feeling the warm slickness on his skin now, and feeling the way he pushed down into her hand. She could hear the quiet groans he gave her with each stroke, feeling the way he began to slow down- no doubt savoring the additional touch. Which only allowed her fingers to get a better hold on him, allowing her to squeeze at his cock and to stroke his balls when he sank himself in full.

Rain managed a few more thrusts before he pulled himself free; his hands half-pushing forward on her own hips to hasten the removal.

And for a moment, she took the break as she needed it.

Leaning onto her arms once more, Skarlet tucked her head against her forearms and tried to breathe in. Her body was still trembling in the aftermath; her fingers entering an almost pins and needles state as she briefly flexed them to get the feeling back. There was a different kind of ache growing between her legs now; a subtle soreness at how well she had taken him- yet another instance where she would be feeling him for a few days after.

Just a small price to pay, of course.

Pushing herself back up, she reached forward just enough to free her legs before she slowly rolled over onto her back to face him. "You need to switch?" Skarlet mused, trying not to sound as out of breath as she felt- although she knew it would entertain him. "Or are you getting bored?"

"There are rocks all over the bridge and you were getting a little wild, I didn't want you to cut your knees," Rain replied.

She doubted that that was his honest reasoning.

Moving her hands underneath her, Skarlet pushed herself up into a semi-reclined position before she moved a foot to rest against his abdomen; she pushed him back onto his shins with the slightest amount of pressure.

It was difficult not to let her eyes linger on how hard he still was, although she kept finding herself drifting back down to his cock despite so. And in her defense, it was just sitting there, out in the open.

Not to mention, she could see that his eyes were following every movement from her still heaving chest- no doubt enjoying the show from her breasts.

"With all those tricks up your sleeve, one would be hard pressed to find you boring," he continued.

And she found herself smiling at the words.

"Is that so?" Skarlet mused, as she slowly pushed herself up now and moved to settle on her knees. She reached her hands out to touch against his thighs before she leaned into him. "Then why don't I let my friends in on the action here, hm? And you lie back and let me finally give you what you came all the way out here for."

She could see the hunger in his eyes reignite.

She could see the way he was fully enamored by her words, by her promise.

"Is that right?" Rain questioned, cocking his head with the offer. "I suppose I can't say no, since you asked so nicely."

Skarlet rolled her eyes at the remark, knowing well he was just finding amusement in himself now. Still, she leaned up to kiss him and let her hands slowly work their way up his body until she could drape her arms over his shoulders. And Rain welcomed the close gesture as he ran his palms against her back before he curled his fingers against her ribs and pulled her in against him.

There was no denying the cool heat his skin was putting off now, preventing them from feeling that dry sensation of sweating skin between them.

A small comfort to have.

Despite giving him a heads up, Skarlet summoned a tendril between them as discreetly as she could and felt the subtle groan against her lips as she wrapped it around his cock, squeezing him around the base once more.

Rain was no doubt a little sensitive to the touch right now, which was her reasoning for why he had pulled away before- but it wouldn't take much to get him back up to pace again.

And besides, she knew he enjoyed the discomfort, the pain.

Parting his lips with her tongue, she crossed her arms over the back of his neck to pull him in and anchor him to her.

She let the tentacle pulsate around his cock, keeping one part curled around the base of his shaft while the other part began to stroke him. She could feel him almost shaking with each motion, taken in by the touch of cool blood against his skin; the tentacle faked a sensation of touch while not quite allowing the full weight, the firm grip of it to be replicated.

It was enough to tease him with though, enough to put him on edge.

But not enough for him to get a release out of it.

Moving her hands to his chest, Skarlet slowly pushed him down and eased him onto his back; she felt the way Rain had to release her in order to catch himself, lest he go down harder than necessary.

He still went down easily though- and he seemed eager to have her climb back on top of him.

Moving between his thighs, she crawled over him and leaned down to brush her lips against his abdomen and then slowly worked her way up. She kissed at his ribs, at the heated skin of his chest, lingering at the nape of his neck as she worked her legs back over his waist before she sat up. Pressing her hands to his chest, Skarlet used him as leverage to get herself to her knees.

Keeping the tendril around his cock, she kept him steady as she mounted him once more and slowly slid him back inside of her.

And the moan that escaped him sounded like long-awaited relief as he welcomed her body back around his cock.

Taking him in, Skarlet waved the tendril off as she slowly brought herself back to his waist. Her body was still aching from before but there was a pleasure here that she couldn't resist. And knowing that their next meet-up might be months away, she needed to take him as many times as she could now to savor the memory- and remind herself of why she put up with him.

With slow, easy thrusts, she moved at her own pace as she lifted herself against him- sliding up and down against his cock until the rhythm felt right.

And there was no denying how Rain started to work himself underneath her, matching her thrusts with his own.

Leaning in, she felt the warmth of his blood underneath his skin, bubbling underneath her palms once more- and it was too agonizing to ignore now. What little bit she had siphoned from him before felt like it had been drained between them; it had only been a taste anyways, something to keep her fueled while they went back and forth on one another.

But now there was that _need_.

That reason for why she had come all the way out here in the first place- and not just to answer his beck and call.

"Are you ready?" Skarlet spoke. "Because once it starts, it doesn't stop until I say so."

"That's what I'm counting on," Rain replied, a half-made assurance as he slapped his hands against her thighs. "I thought you were going to bring your friends?"

"Give them time."

He had had his warning.

Despite how he reviled in all of it, she still felt it necessary to let him know.

Either out of her own conscious or so that he could prepare himself for the case.

There was no going back from here.

She heard Rain groan as she started to pull his blood to the surface once more; and once more, she felt the concentration of his drawn energy burning at her fingertips. It felt warm, like a hot-drawn bath at the end of a long day- a hot meal at the end of the working hours. The energy filled the space under her skin; it flowed through her own veins and pumped throughout her body.

It flooded her head, giving off a momentary swimming sensation as her senses became temporarily overwhelmed by the upsurge.

The more she pulled, the more she let herself feed on his blood, the more she could feel Rain squirming underneath her.

The louder she could hear him get between clenched teeth and tight lungs.

Skarlet could feel his chest beginning to heave underneath her palms, which only helped the blood pumping at her fingertips.

Rain's hands moved to her hips, pushing down against her as he used her weight to keep himself steady- even as she felt his thrusting starting to become offset from their shared rhythm.

But she let herself focus on herself, on keeping her own rhythm and feeling the warmth of his blood moving through her body.

There was no denying the subtle breaks between his breaths; the panting, the hard gasping just before Rain threw his head back- his pale lips parted with each struggling breath.

Skarlet could see the bruising gathering on his chest; an impression of her palms against his skin.

She pushed them forward, revealing the pool of blood beneath them, before she wrapped her hands around his neck instead.

With his energy surging under her skin, Skarlet felt it radiating through every inch of her body- fueling her with the power she had been craving. But what was power without execution? What was the point of power if she didn't get to use it? After all, it was easy to splurge resources when the source of her feeding was still here, still trapped underneath her.

It didn't take much effort for her to turn the ground underneath him into a bubbling mess of blood and tendrils, turning it into a bed to some kind of Lovecraftian nightmare.

Skarlet knew what his weak spots were and she wasted very little time in letting the tendrils stretch out and wrap themselves around him.

Rain's legs were strong but the right touch in the right place could make them buckle. So she wrapped a pair of tentacles around his thighs and had them keep a subtle hold on him as they curled over his skin, caressing the tense muscle underneath.

She slid another pair around his forearms and wrists and pulled on them- not enough to drag them down, but enough to give him the illusion of it. Enough to give him the illusion of a struggle, of a fight.

For a few of the remaining tentacles, Skarlet rolled them against his back; half protecting him from the rough ground underneath him, while also stroking his already bruised skin. The warm sensations would feel like water on his skin, providing him with some sense of comfort amongst the entanglement he found himself in. Not to mention, she liked the sight of the blood-red void underneath him; she liked the illusion of it swallowing him whole, keeping him trapped somewhere where she could always feed on him.

She waited, letting Rain catch up with the sensations coursing through him and around him, letting him try and catch him breath where he could.

Knowing well that she had one more trick up her sleeve.

Summoning one last tendril, confident now that she had made up for most of the lost time between them, Skarlet slowly guided it between his thighs.

And almost immediately, she felt Rain jerk underneath her as the tentacle pressed against him- and she felt the lift of his hips as it slid inside of him now. She used the tentacles wrapped around his thighs to pull him back down, forcing him to somewhat settle beneath her.

Skarlet could feel the groan vibrate against her palms as she guided the tendril, as she slid it back and forth, sliding it in and out of him at her pace. Keeping the movement slow, she let the tendril move in time with her own hips as they rocked against him in one continuous motion- compounding two sensations in one. It didn't take long, just a few thrusts before she felt Rain settle underneath her, before she felt the way he soon went lax under the dual motions.

She watched as his eyes rolled up as they eventually fell into sync.

The first time she had gotten power-hungry from overindulgence, she had summoned her blood tentacles as a spur of the moment kind of thing; a side-effect of being high on power and energy that wasn't hers. It had flooded her senses beyond what she could control; it had almost wiped out any sense of rational reasoning. To say she had gone overboard was a bit of an understatement, but in the aftermath of it, when he had regained consciousness anyways, Rain had pressed her on where the behavior came from.

Not out of anger, not out of having been caught off-guard and then held down.

But out of morbid curiosity again.

Out of hunger.

"Tell me, Prince, are they being nice to you?" Skarlet teased, ensuring that he could feel each thrust moving inside of him.

Rain was already completely lost in his own train of motion; she almost doubted that he could even feel the whole scope of what was going on. But he would in the aftermath, and that was when he enjoyed it the most.

Curling her fingers against his throat, Skarlet started to bear her weight against him- riding him out in full and letting the tendril follow in suit. She could feel his body shifting against the blood pool with each thrust; each one now a little more or less rough than the last. She felt him dig his heels into the ground, giving him leverage against the rocking between his own legs- giving him some semblance of control underneath her.

But more importantly, it allowed him to rock himself in time with her now- catching up on her rhythm.

He couldn't speak to her but this was his way of responding, of coaxing her every future move.

His energy continued to surge through her as Skarlet felt the power of it continue to flood out her senses, slowly elevating her to a different kind of euphoria; and it only encouraged her to continue to engorge herself on his eager blood.

Skarlet barely came back to her senses at the feeling of her body tightening around him before she came once again, clenching and spilling herself around his cock. It felt like every nerve in her body stopped just so it could full focus on the climax that had fed on him just as much as she had. And the bucking, the squirming underneath her, the spill of warmth flooding her belly let her know that, out of all the chaos, Rain had found his release as well.

The one he had come out this way to get.

The empty pit below seemed to echo something back to them, but she couldn't hear it over the pounding in her head.

Skarlet found herself gasping, not quite able to make out what had happened- other than the obvious. Her hands fell away from his neck and scrambled to the ground above his shoulders, and even then she felt her arms almost give out. In which case, she felt Rain's hands at her shoulders now, keeping her upright just before she fell on top of him.

She kept her eyes closed until the white stars on the back of her eyelids disappeared.

And when she did open them again, she looked down at him- and wasn't surprised to see him seemingly on the verge of passing out.

His skin was pale and white. There were bruises growing on his chest and neck, dark-purple outlines of her hands against his skin.

He had blood trickling from his nose and over his lips, painting the scars on his chin.

There was even blood filling in the white space of his right eye, no doubt having burst from underneath the collected pressures.

Rain stammered through a few breaths, eventually closing his eyes as he chose to focus more on remaining conscious- lest they both collapse into a useless heap together.

And potentially collapse over the edge of the bridge.

And considering that the tendrils were gone now, having dissipated from her lack of focus on them, they didn't have much of a tether keeping them here; all they had were their own hands and each other to keep steady.

"Okay-" Rain started, breathing hard through the word and sounding as though he was forcing himself to string a sentence together, "we've both had our fill, now please get off."

That was one way of phrasing it.

Rather crudely at that considering all that she had done for him.

Still, Skarlet gave an airless sort of laugh before she managed to push herself back, feeling how her limbs felt numb and uncoordinated beneath her. It was a bit of a downer compared to the power trip she had just been riding, but the energy would come back soon enough; she just needed to keep breathing until then and manage a clear head.

"Are you sure about that?" she teased, although she was certain that she wouldn't be able to risk taking him again in this state- for both of their sakes.

"Stop running blood to my penis, Skarlet."

She managed a more suitable laugh this time before she carefully dismounted, feeling how her whole body shook as she pulled herself from him. And there was a greater ache between her legs now; more of a punishment than a warning this time.

She slowly moved to lie down next to him, only to have Rain stop her once more- at least just long enough for him to put his arm out for her. And she gladly took the offer as she rested her head against his bicep before she moved a hand to curl against his shoulder as she turned her body in towards him.

There were a few minutes of silence.

A few minutes needed to recollect themselves.

Skarlet trailed circles with her fingertips against his skin, keeping track of how long it took him to come down off of his high. She counted the breaths it took before the heaving of his chest leveled out, the first sign of him coming back.

When Rain brushed a hand across his lips, wiping the blood from his nose, she knew that he was relatively back to normal.

At least normal enough to talk again.

"Next time, I get to make the call," Skarlet spoke.

"Your next call is just going to be us in the blood river," Rain replied. "Or somewhere worse."

"Doesn't matter, it'll be my call," she reminded, before she moved her hand to rub against his chest now- ginger with the still fresh bruising. But she enjoyed being able to feel his chest rise and fall underneath her palm. His blood no longer called for her, which allowed her to set her focus on just feeling the warmth of his skin against her touch. "It'll be romantic- more than this was."

A tease still, despite the circumstances.

"Still got the job done."

Skarlet rolled her eyes but admitted that he was unfortunately right- not that she had any right to complain at this point.

They weren't really romantics anyways, not when they were starved like this.

She felt Rain pull his arm in and felt the way he pulled her in with it, pulling her in against him once more.

"It'll be your call though," he agreed.

"I'll pick some place nice."


End file.
